Alabama Sheriff's Department Ignore Lesbian Hate Crime?

Laura Gilbert, a 25-year-old openly lesbian woman from Alabama, was attacked by roughly a dozen people outside a straight bar in Opelika, AL. Gilbert and her high school friend, Sheila Siddall, say they went there to sing karoake. “As soon as we walked in the bar, I felt uncomfortable,” Gilbert said. “I felt everybody staring at us, but you know, it was her birthday, I didn’t want to ruin it for her.” Gilbert and Siddall say as they were about to leave, a woman confronted them and started to fight with them. The fight grew to include about a dozen people, including two men, and moved outside, according to the women.

It was Sheila Siddall who called the police, expecting them to come and arrest the group. However, when a police officer arrived, Gilbert was the only one who was arrested, and was charged with disorderly conduct. Out of the dozen people at the scene, many of whom were intoxicated, and all of them were engaged in “disorderly conduct,” but Gilbert says that she wasn’t even interviewed by the police. The only statements that were taken down were from her attackers. The police say this is because Gibert was too intoxicated to give a statement, although they did proceed to take statements from other drunk people.

Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones says, “The arrest that took place was a result of a law enforcement officer actively and presently observing what he at that moment in time perceived to be a violation of the law.” However, the witnesses agree that the fight was already over by the time any law enforcement arrived, so the officer actually observed no crime.

Alabama’s state hate crimes legislation does not include sexual orientation or gender identity as a protected class, and this isn't the first time that the law officials have overlooked these type of hate crimes.

Below is the news clip from this incident, it is definitely worth taking a look at.

Four arrested in Richmond lesbian gang rape case

Yahoo news reported that teo men and two teens have been arrested on suspicion of gang-raping a woman last month in the Richmond, CA, while allegedly taunting her for being a lesbian, police said Thursday.

Officers arrested Humberto Hernandez Salvador at his Richmond home Wednesday night, Richmond police Lt. Mark Gagan said. The 31-year-old is being held without bail on gang rape, kidnapping and carjacking charges.

On Wednesday, police also arrested a 15-year-old Richmond boy and a 16-year-old Hercules boy, who were being held at a juvenile detention center on similar charges. Their names were not released.

Josue Gonzalez, 21, turned himself in Thursday after police announced they were searching for him. He was wanted on a $1 million arrest warrant on charges of gang rape, kidnapping and carjacking.

Gagan said Gonzalez asked for an attorney when he turned himself in, but said nothing about his alleged role in the attack.

Police would not detail each person's alleged involvement in the attack but said tips from local residents led to the arrests.

Detectives say the 28-year-old victim was attacked on Dec. 13 after she got out of her car, which bore a rainbow gay pride sticker. The alleged attackers made comments indicating they knew she was a lesbian, police said.

Authorities have characterized the case as a hate crime. Police said the victim lives openly with a female partner.

The 45-minute attack started when one of the men approached the woman in the street, struck her with a blunt object, ordered her to disrobe and sexually assaulted her with the help of the others, according to detectives.

When the group saw another person approaching, they forced the victim back into her car and took her to a burned-out apartment building. She was raped again inside and outside the vehicle and left naked outside the building while the alleged assailants took her wallet and drove off in her car, police said.

Lesbian's Gang Rape Shocks San Francisco Bay Area

When I hear about a horrific event, such as this one, that effects the lesbian community, I sometimes wonder if it is appropriate for me to post the details on my blog. However, I feel that it is essential we are made aware of what is going on in our community, and perhaps by having this knowledge, we may be able to prevent such an attack in the future.

AP News writer, Lisa Leff, reported yesterday that a woman in the San Francisco Bay area was jumped by four men, taunted for being a lesbian, repeatedly raped and left naked outside an abandoned apartment building.

The 28-year-old victim was attacked on Dec. 13 after she got out of her car, which bore a rainbow gay pride sticker. The men, who ranged from their late teens to their 30s, made comments indicating they knew her sexual orientation, said Richmond police Lt. Mark Gagan.

"It just pushes it beyond fathomable," he said. "The level of trauma _ physical and emotional _ this victim has suffered is extreme."

Authorities are characterizing the attack as a hate crime but declined to reveal why they think the woman was singled out because of her sexual orientation. Gagan would say only that the victim lived openly with a female partner and had a rainbow flag sticker on her car.

The 45-minute attack began when one of the men approached the woman as she crossed the street, struck her with a blunt object, ordered her to disrobe and sexually assaulted her on the spot with the help of the other men.

When the group saw another person approaching, they forced the victim back into her car and took her to a burned-out apartment building, where she was raped again inside and outside the vehicle. The assailants took her wallet and drove off in her car. Officers found the car abandoned two days later.

The woman sought help from a nearby resident, and she was examined at a hospital. Although the victim said she did not know her attackers, detectives hope someone in the community knows them. One of the men went by the nickname "Blue" and another was called "Pato," according to authorities.

Richmond police are offering a $10,000 award for information leading to the arrest of the attackers.

Gay rights advocates note that hate crimes based on sexual orientation have increased nationwide as of late. There were 1,415 such crimes in 2006 and 1,460 in 2007, both times making up about 16 percent of the total, according to the FBI.

Avy Skolnik, a coordinator with the New York-based National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, noted that gay, lesbian and transgender crime victims may be more reluctant than heterosexual victims to contact police.

"Assailants target LGBT people of all gender identities with sexual assault," he said. "Such targeting is one of the most cruel, dehumanizing and violent forms of hate violence that our communities experience."

Skolnik said the group plans to analyze hate crime data to see whether fluctuations may be related to the gay marriage bans that appeared on ballots this year in California, Arizona and Florida.

"Anytime there is an anti-LGBT initiative, we tend to see spikes both in the numbers and the severity of attacks," he said. "People feel this extra entitlement to act out their prejudice."

Lesbian Parent's Attacked at Child's School

Last week in Toronto Canada, a lesbian couple was physically attacked by another parent outside of their children's elementary school.

The local news reported, "Ms. Dimitriou, 30, and her lesbian partner Jane Currie, 37, said Friday they still can’t believe what happened. 'He [Mark Scott] clocked me right in the face, like right in the side of my face, and I hit my truck and I couldn’t see anything, like I blacked out,' Ms. Dimitriou said. 'I was awake but I could hear everything but I just couldn't see anything. Then I think he clocked me again right in the top of my head.'

Anji Dimitriou said she was helping her son put his backpack into the car when another child’s father came toward her and began yelling, "which of you two men spoke to my kid? Fucking dyke lesbians." Then "out of nowhere" he spit in her face and punched her."

Jane Currie saw what was happening to her partner and rushed over. “I had said to him, ‘you asshole what are you doing? You just beat a woman’ (then) bang I got it” she said.

To make matters worse, the attack occurred in front of the couple's three children, the attacker's children, and other kids at a school.

“Kids were screaming. Little kids. It happened right where kids go to get on the school bus. They were so afraid,” Jane said as she began to cry. “You try and explain that to your kids. They’re petrified. So scared they can’t sleep at night.”

Durham Regional Police Sgt. Paul McCurbin said Mark Scott, 43, of Oshawa faces two charges of assault causing bodily harm in connection with the incident.

School officials said a “no trespass” order has also been issued by the school.

Source:
Ontario News
newdurhamregion.com