Student Charged, Age on date of alleged offense(s), Hometown, Date(s) Charged
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School Student attended when charged
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Legal Charge(s)
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Outcome
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| Nathan H. Poffenbarger, 20, Woodsboro, MD. Indicted by a grand jury: May 3, 2006. The hate crime occurred on February 18, 2006.
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Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. |
First-degree assault as a hate crime; three counts of second-degree assault as hate crimes; and tampering with evidence (for allegedly yelling racial slurs and for allegedly stabbing a black Union College student, then destroying the knife. The victim was left with lingering injury). |
Nathan Poffenbarger, who is white, was immediately expelled from Cornell and was barred from campus.
In December, 2006: pleaded guilty to felony assault as a hate crime and tampering with evidence.
January 22, 2007: Poffenbarger was sentenced to 16 months to 4 years in prison. Poffenbarger was also arrested several weeks before his hate crime conviction in Maryland for possession of marijuana.
September 17, 2009: at the age of 24 he was released from the Great Meadow Correctional Facility and placed on parole. This date was the earliest release date he could have had.
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Stanislav Shmulevich, 24, Brooklyn, NY (originally from the former Soviet Union). October 13, 2006, & November 21, 2006.
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Pace University,
New York City, NY. |
Two counts criminal mischief as a hate crime (alleged to have flushed two Qu’rans in toilets at Pace University). |
March 3, 2008: No trial. Pleaded guilty to one count of disorderly conduct, and the hate crime charges dropped. Given 300 hours of community service. |
Michael Bates, 19, a 6’2”, 225-pound sophomore on the school’s football team, from Reidsville, NC, and originally from Alma, MI.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. On May 25, 2007, Bates turns himself in and is charged with felony assault allegedly causing serious bodily injury to James Michael Fargis in April, 2007, in an unrelated case. |
Michael Robert Six, 20, a 6’3”, 270-pound junior on the school’s football team, Clemmons, NC.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. |
Christopher Barnette, 21, a 6’0”, 190-pound senior on the school’s football team, from Semora, NC, originally from Durham, NC.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. |
Jonathan Blake Underwood, 20, a 5’11”, 225-pound sophomore on the school’s football team, Clinton, SC.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. |
Micah Rushing, 21, a 5’9”, 190-pound senior on the school’s football team, Albemarle, NC.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. |
Jazz Favors, 20, a 6’2”, 225-pound freshman on the school’s football team, Alpharetta, GA.
January 22, 2007. |
Guilford College, Greensboro, NC. |
Assault & Battery, and communicating threats (alleged to have attacked three Palestinian students on January 20, 2007). |
On March 15, 2007, all charges were dropped by Guilford County Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. |
Student Charged, Age on date of alleged offense(s), Hometown, Date(s) Charged
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School Student attended when charged
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Legal Charge(s)
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Outcome
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Adam Perez, 21,
Colorado Springs, CO.
March 11, 2007.
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University of Colorado, Boulder, CO. |
Second-degree assault and bias motivated crime (alleged to have assaulted a 23-year-old gay man near the Pearl Street Mall in which a gay slur was directed at the victim). |
Suspended from school several days after being charged. No trial. On May 15, 2007, he pleaded No Contest to a bias-motivated crime, a felony; the assault charge was dropped. He was ordered to partake in a restorative justice program. No jail time. If he stays out of trouble for 12 months, the felony will disappear from his record. A No Contest plea protects Perez from implicating himself if he is sued. |
Eric William Schorling, 21, of Virginia.
March 11, 2007. |
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO. |
Third-degree assault, bias motivated crimes and felony criminal mischief (alleged to have assaulted a 23-year-old gay man near the Pearl Street Mall in which a gay slur was directed at the victim). |
Suspended from school. On June 12, 2007, Eric Schorling pleaded No Contest to a bias-motivated crime, a felony; the assault charge was dropped. He was ordered to partake in a restorative justice program. No jail time. If he stays out of trouble for 12 months, the felony will disappear from his record. A No Contest plea protects Schorling from implicating himself if he is sued. |
Philip Anderton Cooney, 19,
Southlake, TX.
March 11, 2007. |
Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. |
Bias-motivated assault (alleged to have assaulted a gay man on September 9, 2007). |
Hate crime charge was reduced to simple assault and that charge was dropped by the U.S. Attorney's office on April 17, 2008. |
Alta Rae Merkling, 18, Littleton, CO.
Incident occurred on October. 27, 2007. |
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO. |
Filing a false police report, a class three misdemeanor. |
The freshman lesbian music education major at the University of Colorado and 2007 graduate of Highlands Ranch High School in Littleton, Colorado, faked a hate crime (she cut her own cheek and said it was an anti-lesbian attack). |
Kimberly Babajko, 19, Brooklyn, NY.
December 7, 2007. |
Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, NY. |
Third-degree assault; accused of being part of a group of ten that is said to have attacked three Jewish Q train subway riders. |
January 7, 2008: Prosecutors presented evidence to a grand jury that the incident was a hate crime. On April 14, 2009, Babajko pleaded guilty to third-degree assault as a hate crime and harassment. She said in court, "It was religiously motivated . . . I hit the victim because she was Jewish." Babajko was then sentenced to a 15-month jail-alternative program at Common Justice. |
Francisco Nava, 23, Bedford, Texas,
Incident occurred on December 14, 2007. |
Princeton University, Princeton, NJ. |
NONE
|
The 23-year-old Princeton junior, from Bedford, Texas, faked a crime and stated it was a hate crime (self-inflicted injuries; stupidly claimed the “attack” was due to his conservative politics even though political beliefs are not covered in any American hate crime law). |
Max Drazdik, 18,
East Windsor, NJ. He made the 2002 Pop Warner Second Team All-Americans football team.
January 7, 2008. |
George Washington University, Washington, D.C. |
Bias intimidation and bias-based criminal mischief (alleged to have vandalized, via spray-painting, property in Roosevelt, Hightstown, and East Windsor, New Jersey). |
Case still open; it was transferred to the Mercer County Court from the out of the East Windsor Municipal Court in East Windsor, NJ. Status hearing on August 8, 2008. |
Nikolai Afanassenkov, 18,
East Windsor, NJ.
January 7, 2008. |
University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT. |
Bias intimidation and bias-based criminal mischief (alleged to have vandalized, via spray-painting, property in Roosevelt, Hightstown, and East Windsor, New Jersey). |
Case still open; it was transferred to the Mercer County Court from the out of the East Windsor Municipal Court in East Windsor, NJ. Status hearing on August 8, 2008. |
Nicholas Kurahara, 18,
East Windsor, NJ.
January 7, 2008. |
University of Delaware, Newark, DE. |
Bias intimidation and bias-based criminal mischief (alleged to have vandalized, via spray-painting, property in Roosevelt, Hightstown, and East Windsor, New Jersey). |
Case still open; it was transferred to the Mercer County Court from the out of the East Windsor Municipal Court in East Windsor, NJ. Status hearing on August 8, 2008. |
Michael Walsh, 20, Florham Park, NJ.
February 15, 2008. |
Temple University, Philadelphia, PA. |
Aggravated Assault, Ethnic Intimidation, Criminal Conspiracy Engaging in Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Terroristic Threats with Intent to Terrorize Another (alleged to have targeted a Jewish student who suffered a fractured nose, a broken eye socket and a deviated septum). |
February 27, 2008: Arrested.
The case is being heard out of the First Judicial District Court of Pennsylvania.
January 11, 2010: scheduled trial date. |
David Scott, 20,
Willow Grove, PA.
February 15, 2008. |
Temple University, Philadelphia, PA. |
Aggravated Assault, Ethnic Intimidation, Criminal Conspiracy Engaging in Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Terroristic Threats with Intent to Terrorize Another (alleged to have targeted a Jewish student who suffered a fractured nose, a broken eye socket and a deviated septum). |
February 27, 2008: Arrested.
The case is being heard out of the First Judicial District Court of Pennsylvania.
January 11, 2010: scheduled trial date. |
Stephen Scott, 19,
Willow Grove, PA.
February 15, 2008. |
Temple University, Philadelphia, PA. |
Aggravated Assault, Ethnic Intimidation, Criminal Conspiracy Engaging in Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Terroristic Threats with Intent to Terrorize Another (alleged to have targeted a Jewish student who suffered a fractured nose, a broken eye socket and a deviated septum). |
February 27, 2008: Arrested.
The case is being heard out of the First Judicial District Court of Pennsylvania.
January 11, 2010: scheduled trial date. |
Bryan Pedreiro, 18,
East Brunswick, NJ. February 15, 2008. He had been on the East Brunswick High School wrestling team.
|
Temple University, Philadelphia, PA. |
Aggravated Assault, Ethnic Intimidation, Criminal Conspiracy Engaging in Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Terroristic Threats with Intent to Terrorize Another (alleged to have targeted a Jewish student who suffered a fractured nose, a broken eye socket and a deviated septum). |
February 27, 2008: Arrested.
The case is being heard out of the First Judicial District Court of Pennsylvania.
January 11, 2010: scheduled trial date. |
Student Charged, Age on date of alleged offense(s), Hometown, Date(s) Charged
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School Student attended when charged
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Legal Charge(s)
|
Outcome
|
Brett Vanasdlen, 18, Minooka, IL. He played college baseball. Wannabe MLB player.
April 12, 2008. |
Parkland College, Champaign, IL. |
Hate Crime, a felony (yelled anti-gay slur, then assaulted a Latino gay man because of his sexual orientation causing him to suffer a concussion). |
On September 8, 2008, Brett Vanasdlen, 19, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge in the Champaign County Circuit Court and Judge Tom Difinis sentenced the self-described evangelical Christian to two years of court supervision. |
Tommy Henry, 19, Maiden, NC.
July 10, 2008. He had been a Maiden High School star running back at 6’0”, 205 pounds. |
Coffeyville Community College,
Coffeyville, KS. |
Felony assault with a deadly weapon & kidnapping. Police believed the incident was a possible race-based hate crime and they asked the FBI to assist with the investigation (with two other African-American males, Henry is accused of duct-taping a 20-year-old homeless, white male, and beating & burning him on June 20, 2008, in Newton, NC. The victim was twice sodomized). |
Henry turned himself in on July 10, 2008, after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was scheduled to instruct and speak at a kids’ football camp from July 11-14, 2008 in Maiden, NC. Two other suspects were also arrested. In early September, 2008, the U.S. Attorney's Office said the alleged incident was not a hate crime. No reason was given. |
| Derrick M. Donchak, 18, Shenandoah, PA. He had been the quarterback for Shenandoah Valley High School football team, and he had been the catcher for that school’s baseball team. July 25, 2008.
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Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA. |
State charges: Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, Ethnic Intimidation (hate crime), Corruption of Minors, Underage Drinking, & Furnishing Alcohol to Minors (allegedly beat & kicked a Mexican man to death with two co-defendants because of the victim’s ethnicity).
Federal charges: hate crime and obstruction of justice.
|
Donchak and his two white co-defendants—Brandon Piekarsky, 16, & Colin Walsh, 17, who were both charged as adults with homicide and ethnic intimidation—turned themselves in on July 25, 2008. On May 1, 2009, Donchak, 19, was acquitted by an all-white jury of Aggravated Assault and Ethnic Intimidation by an all-white jury. Instead, he was convicted of Simple Assault in the slaying of Mr. Luís Ramírez, 25, and Donchak was also found guilty of Corruption of Minors, and an alcohol charge. However, on December 15, 2009, the Department of Justice indicted Donchak on a hate crime charge for assaulting the victim, and three counts of conspiring to obstruct justice and related offenses, for allegedly participating in a scheme to obstruct the investigation into the assault and subsequent death of Mr. Ramírez. Donchak, 19, and co-defendant Piekarsky, 17, pleaded not guilty to the federal charges in a federal court in Wilkes-Barre on December 22, 2009. Both men were denied bail initially, but in early January, 2010, U.S. District Judge A. Richard Caputo ordered Piekarsky confined to his home while awaiting trial. Likewise, on January 13, 2010, a federal judge ruled that Donchak be released from custody while awaiting trial. If found guilty as charged. both could receive life in prison.
On March 25, 2010: U.S. District Judge A. Richard Caputo announced that on October 4, 2010, Derrick M. Donchak's federal hate crime and obstruction of justice trial will begin in Courtroom 3 of the Max Rosenn United States Courthouse, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. |
| Safia Z. Jilani, 19, Oak Brook, IL. October 17, 2008. |
Elmhurst College, Elmhurst, IL. |
Jilani claimed she was struck by a white masked gunman in a basement bathroom of the Schaible Science Center on campus. She said the attack was motivated due to her Islamic faith.
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October 17, 2008: Jilani was arrested and charged with filing a false police report, a Class 4 Felony, punishable by up to one to three years in prison. There was no gunman and no hate crime occurred. Jilani was indicted on November 14, 2008; she was arraigned on November 17, 2008. If she is found guilty, she could receive a jail sentence of one to three years.
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| Ashley Todd, 20, College Station, TX. Arrested on October 24, 2008. |
Blinn College, Brenham, TX. |
Todd—a volunteer for the McCain for President campaign and a field representative for the College Republican National Committee—claimed she was beaten, robbed, and had the letter "B" carved into her right cheek at a Citizens Bank ATM in the Bloomfield neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by an angry, knife-wielding, black, Barack Obama supporter, after the man saw her McCain for President bumper sticker on Todd's car on October 23, 2008. The implication of Ashley Todd's claims was that the "attack" was due to hate based on her race (white) and her conservative politics. She was arrested and arraigned for filing a false police report on October 24, 2008.
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October 24, 2008: Todd—who ealier in the year was asked to leave the Ron Paul for President campaign after she posed as a Mike Huckabee supporter in an attempt to obtain information about his campaign strategies and after she e-mailed Ron Paul staff claiming her tires were slashed and that campaign paraphernalia had been stolen from her car because she supported Ron Paul—admitted that the "attack" she reported was a hoax. Todd admitted to police she inflicted the injuries on herself. After her arrest and arraignment, Todd was jailed at the Allegheny County Jail on $50,000 bail; and, she was ordered by District Judge John N. Bova to undergo an evaluation by the jail's behavior clinic.
October 30, 2008: Todd agreed to enter a program for first-time offenders without entering a plea. She was required to undergo mental health treatment, not incur new criminal charges, and let authorities know of her whereabouts as part of her release from jail.
May 22, 2009: Todd was sentenced to nine months of probation and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service. If she maintains the conditions of her probation, her record eventually will be expunged.
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| Charles Merritt, 18, Clifton, ME. Arrested on October 29, 2008. |
Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT. |
Chuck Merritt, who is white, was charged with three counts each of intimidation based on bigotry and bias, first-degree harassment and disorderly conduct for allegedly sending threatening and racially motivated telephone calls to Harold Washington, who is black, and to two other black Quinnipiac basketball players in October, 2008.
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November 6, 2008: Merritt, who was expelled from Quinnipiac University following his arrest, was arraigned. He was released on $100,000 bond.
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PERPETRATORS' IDENTITIES KEPT SECRET
Incident occurred on November 5, 2008.
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North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. |
Four North Carolina State University students, at least one of whom is male, painted a racist slur and called for the assassination of newly elected president Barack Obama inside that school's Free Expression Tunnel. NC State officials refused to disclose the names of the perpetrators.
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Despite the fact that it is illegal to threaten to kill or to call for the assassination of the president of the United States, and despite the fact that the four perpetrators spray-painted "Let's shoot that Nigger in the head" and "Hang Obama by a noose", the four students were never charged by any local, state or federal law enforcement agency with any crime. No disciplinary action was taken by NC State University either.
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Harold Washington, 18, Brandywine, MD. Freshman basketball guard for Quinnipiac University. November 7, 2008. |
Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT. |
Washington, who was allegedly the victim of hate crimes at the hands of his white roommate, is alleged to have used Facebook to anonymously harass one of the two other black basketball players allegedly targeted in the case against Charles Merritt.
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November 14, 2008: charged with intimidation based on bigotry and bias (a hate crime), harassment, and breach of peace. He was expelled from Quinnipiac University following his arrest. Washington turned himself in and was released on $5,000 bail. He was scheduled to appear in Meriden Superior Court on November 28, 2008.
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Student Charged, Age on date of alleged offense(s), Hometown, Date(s) Charged
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School Student attended when charged
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Legal Charge(s)
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Outcome
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| Stephen J. Buttafuoco, 23, West Babylon, NY. January 9, 2009. |
Queens College (City University of New York), Flushing, NY. |
Aggravated harassment as a hate crime. Working as a waiter at a Jewish wedding in Woodbury, New York (Nassau County), on January 4, 2009, Buttafuoco, who was residing in Oakland Gardens, NY, at the time and whose father, Daniel, is a Pentecostal minister at the Gateway Life Center in Babylon, NY, is alleged to have played Arabic chants over the DJ's stereo system panicking many of the guests who feared a terroristic attack. |
Immediately fired from his job at Morrell Caterers. Buffafuoco was arraigned in Nassau County District Court on January 10, 2009, and released on $1,500 bail. |
Michael D. Lisman, 20, Kansas City, MO.
April 16, 2009.
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Lewis University, Romeoville, IL.
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One (unspecified) hate crime charge. Lisman and two other Lewis University students allegedly chanted and sang songs using racial slurs and threatening remarks in North Hall before allegedly lowering a noose out of a window to a dormitory window below—a room where three black women resided.
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April 16, 2009: arrested and charged with a hate crime. Lewis University restricted him from campus pending a student judicial hearing. The hate crime charge was reduced to disorderly conduct by the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office. Romeoville, Illinois, had been a sundown town until the 1970's—an all-white town that purged blacks from its community and would not permit them to reside there. |
Daniel Q. Rusch, 20, Schaumburg, IL.
April 16, 2009.
|
Lewis University, Romeoville, IL.
|
One (unspecified) hate crime charge. Rusch and two other Lewis U. students allegedly chanted and sang songs using racial slurs and threatening remarks in North Hall before allegedly lowering a noose out of a window to a dormitory window below—a room where three black women resided.
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April 16, 2009: arrested and charged with a hate crime. Lewis University restricted him from campus pending a student judicial hearing. The hate crime charge was reduced to disorderly conduct by the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office. Romeoville, Illinois, had been a sundown town until the 1970's—an all-white town that purged blacks from its community and would not permit them to reside there—and Schaumburg, Illinois, was a probable sundown town. |
Matthew E. McCormack, 21, Schaumburg, IL.
April 16, 2009.
|
Lewis University, Romeoville, IL.
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One (unspecified) hate crime charge. McCormack and two other Lewis U. students allegedly chanted and sang songs using racial slurs and threatening remarks in North Hall before allegedly lowering a noose out of a window to a dormitory window below—a room where three black women resided.
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April 16, 2009: arrested and charged with a hate crime. Lewis University restricted him from campus pending a student judicial hearing. The hate crime charge was reduced to disorderly conduct by the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office. Romeoville, Illinois, had been a sundown town until the 1970's—an all-white town that purged blacks from its community and would not let them reside there, and Schaumburg, Illinois, was a probable sundown town. |
Eric L. Patten, 20, Winthrop, MA.
May 23, 2009.
|
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO.
|
Assaulted two lesbians on Commercial Street in Provincetown, Massachusetts while hurling anti-gay slurs at them. One was pushed through a window of a restaurant during the attack; police also said they saw Eric Patten punching the other victim while she was on the ground. Also, Patten kicked one police officer and spat at another during his arrest. At his May 26th arraignment, prosecutors said Patten was arrested in another state in 2008 for driving under the influence of alcohol, possession of marijuana, and other charges.
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May 23, 2009: arrested by Provincetown Police.
May 26, 2009: Arraigned out of the Orleans District Court on the following charges: Assault & Battery with a Dangerous Weapon (a window); Intimidation based on sexual orientation (a hate crime); Assault & Battery on a Police Officer; Wanton Destruction of Property Over $250; Disorderly Conduct; and, Resisting Arrest. Patten was released on $1,000 bail to the home of his mother, who teaches at Salem State College in Salem, Massachusetts. Patten originally pleaded Not Guilty to all charges.
September 23, 2009: Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office obtained a civil rights injunction against Eric Patten from Suffolk Superior Court Judge Charles T. Spurlock barring Patten "from violating the civil rights of the victims and all others in the Commonwealth based upon their actual or perceived sexual orientation. A violation of the injunction is a criminal offense punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 and two and a half years in a House of Correction, or if bodily injury results from such violation, a $10,000 fine and up to 10 years in State Prison," according to the Attorney General's Office press release.
October 8, 2009: Eric Patten pleaded guilty to all charges against him, and he was was sentenced by Judge Donald Carpenter to one year in the Barnstable County Correctional Facility with 30 days to serve and the remaining time suspended. He was also given two years probation which will include regular drug and alcohol screening tests. |
Jonathan Bishop, 27, Belleville, IL.
October 3, 2009.
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University of Illinois, Springfield, IL.
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On October 3, 2009, along with two other white UIS students (one of them his roommate, Charles Sales), allegedly hurled anti-gay slurs directed at two men at an off-campus party, and then allegedly assaulted one of the men (a 23-year-old UIS student) by repeatedly punching and kicking him, and allegedly damaged the car belonging to the other man (a 20-year-old). Bishop is also alleged to have struggled with police upon his arrest.
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October 3, 2009: arrested and taken to the Sangamon County Jail; released after posting bond.
October 5, 2009: charged with a felony hate crime, felony criminal damage to property of more than $300, battery, and resisting a peace officer by the Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office.
November 4, 2009: scheduled to appear in the Sangamon County Circuit Court.
UIS officials refused to disclose information about Bishop to us, including whether or not he had any disclipinary action taken against him because of the felony charge he incurred.
December 17, 2009: A Sangamon County grand jury indicted Bishop on the following charges: two counts of battery (Class A misdemeanors); criminal damage to property of more than $300 (a Class 4 felony); and, resisting a peace officer (a Class A misdemeanor). The grand jury declined to indict him on hate crime charges. |
Michial Filipiak, 22, Chicago, IL.
October 3, 2009.
|
University of Illinois, Springfield, IL.
|
On October 3, 2009, along with two other white UIS students (Jonathan Bishop and Charles Sales), allegedly hurled anti-gay slurs directed at two men at an off-campus party, and then allegedly assaulted one of the men (a 23-year-old UIS student) by repeatedly punching and kicking him, and allegedly damaged the car belonging to the other man (a 20-year-old).
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October 3, 2009: arrested and taken to the Sangamon County Jail; released after posting bond.
October 5, 2009: charged with a felony hate crime, felony criminal damage to property of more than $300, and battery by the Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office.
December 17, 2009: A Sangamon County grand jury did not indict Filipiak on any charges. All charges against Filipiak were dismissed. |
Charles A. Sales, 23, Farmersville, IL.
October 3, 2009.
|
University of Illinois, Springfield, IL.
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On October 3, 2009, along with two other white UIS students (Jonathan Bishop and Michial Filipiak), allegedly hurled anti-gay slurs directed at two men at an off-campus party, and then allegedly assaulted one of the men (a 23-year-old UIS student) by repeatedly punching and kicking him, and allegedly damaged the car belonging to the other man (a 20-year-old).
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October 3, 2009: arrested and taken to the Sangamon County Jail; released after posting bond.
October 5, 2009: charged with a felony hate crime, felony criminal damage to property of more than $300, and battery by the Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office.
November 4, 2009: scheduled to appear in the Sangamon County Circuit Court.
UIS officials refused to disclose information about Sales to us, including whether or not he had any disclipinary action taken against him because of the felony charge he incurred.
December 17, 2009: A Sangamon County grand jury indicted Sales on the following charges: two counts of battery (Class A misdemeanors); and, criminal damage to property (a Class 4 felony). The grand jury declined to indict him on hate crime charges. |
Eric Muroski, 18, Southington, CT.
October 27, 2009. He had been a Southington High School defensive linebacker, and was 6’3”, 195 pounds during his senior year in high school.
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University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI.
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On October 21, 2009, Muroski, who is white, allegedly wrote racial epithets and scrawled sexual drawings on the dry erase board outside a Heathman Hall dorm room where three black women lived, and he also allegedly attempted to force his way into the black female students' dorm room. URI campus police referred Muroski's case to the Attorney General's Office as a possible hate crime.
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October 27, 2009: arrested and charged with vandalism and disorderly conduct.
November 4, 2009: pleaded Not Guilty before Judge Edward J. Clifton in the Washington County District Court.
November 18, 2009: scheduled to appear in the Washington County District Court. |
Student Charged, Age on date of alleged offense(s), Hometown, Date(s) Charged
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School Student attended when charged
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Legal Charge(s)
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Outcome
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Sean Little, 21, Evanston, IL.
January 20, 2010; February 23, 2010.
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Loyola University, Chicago, IL.
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On January 20, 2010, Little allegedly hurled anti-gay slurs on a northbound Chicago Red Line train at a gay youth and then at Daniel Hauff, 33, before Little and two other men allegedly physically assaulted Mr. Hauff while continuing to hurl anti-gay slurs at him. The victim was only able to stop the attack by falsely claiming he had AIDS. Briefly hospitalized, Mr. Hauff suffered injuries to his face, chest, back, knee, and foot.
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January 20, 2010: arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery along with his two co-defendants, Benjamin Eder, 23, and Kevin McAndrew, 23, both from Evanston, Illinois.
February 23, 2010: misdemeanor battery charges dropped; Little and his two co-defendants were each charged with two felonies: one count of aggravated battery and one count of a hate crime.
February 24, 2010: Cook County Judge Ramon Ocasio III upheld the hate crime charges against McAndrew, Eder, and Little.
March 17, 2010: Sean Little and his two co-defendants were each indicted on one count of hate crime and two counts of aggravated battery. If convicted, the men face up to five years in prison each.
March 17, 2010: Sean Little and his two co-defendants were each arraigned on one count of hate crime and two counts of aggravated battery.
March 23, 2010: Loyola University's Dean of Students, Jane Neufeld, confirmed Sean Little had gone through the school's judicial process and was no longer enrolled at the university. |
Sean D. Fitzgerald, 19, Kearney, MO.
March 2, 2010.
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University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.
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On February 26, 2010, in the early morning hours, Sean Fitzgerald, a freshman political science major and Naval ROTC midshipman from a small Missouri town that was 98.3% White and only 0.9% Black as of the 2000 Census and a town that was deemed a Sundown Town, along with another white University of Missouri student, Zachary Tucker, a senior psychology major and Naval ROTC midshipman, allegedly tossed hundreds of cotton balls in front of the campus' Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center on Virginia Avenue during Black History Month.
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March 2, 2010: Tucker and Fitzgerald were arrested and charged by police with second-degree felony tampering which police pursued as a hate crime.
March 3, 2010: University of Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton suspended Fitzgerald and Tucker from school pending the outcome of a formal student conduct process; both lost all privileges with the University of Missouri's Naval ROTC program; released from the Boone County Jail after posting $4,500 in bond.
April 19, 2010: Boone County prosecutors decided that a conviction for felony tampering would be unlikely; instead, Fitzgerald was formally charged with littering which is a misdemeanor not covered by Missouri's hate crime law. |
Zachary E. Tucker, 21, St. Louis, MO.
March 2, 2010.
| University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.
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On February 26, 2010, in the early morning hours, Zachary Tucker, a senior psychology major and Naval ROTC midshipman, and another white University of Missouri student, Sean Fitzgerald, a freshman political science major and Naval ROTC midshipman, allegedly tossed hundreds of cotton balls in front of the campus' Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center on Virginia Avenue during Black History Month.
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March 2, 2010: Tucker and Fitzgerald were arrested and charged by police with second-degree felony tampering which police pursued as a hate crime.
March 3, 2010: University of Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton suspended Tucker and Fitzgerald from school pending the outcome of a formal student conduct process; both lost all privileges with the University of Missouri's Naval ROTC program; released from the Boone County Jail after posting $4,500 in bond.
April 19, 2010: Boone County prosecutors decided that a conviction for felony tampering would be unlikely; instead, Tucker was formally charged with littering which is a misdemeanor not covered by Missouri's hate crime law.
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Andrew Scott Gardonia, 29, Independence, MO.
April 15, 2010.
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Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN.
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On April 15, 2010, Andrew S. Gardonia, a Middle Tennessee State University student, was arrested on two-counts of harassment and one count of civil rights intimidation, a felony hate crime. The hate crime is punishable by up to 12-years in prison, or probation and a $5,000 fine.
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On April 15, 2010: Andrew Gardonia, who is white, was arrested for allegedly sending a threatening e-mail filled with racist slurs titled "Clarksville Speedway" to Clarksville Tennessee City Councilman David Allen, who is black in August, 2009. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, who traced the e-mail to Gardonia, also seized his computer. A Montgomery County grand jury indicted Gardonia around the time of his arrest. Gardonia, who disclosed online at a divorced father's website in 2004 that he was "getting my act together" and that he had attended anger management classes, was freed on bond following his arrest.
July 8, 2010: At the age of 30, Gardonia's next court appearance is scheduled on this date in the Montgomery County Courthouse. |
Barry Sayavong, 19, Chico, CA.
April 18, 2010.
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Butte Community College, Chico, CA.
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On April 18, 2010, in the early morning hours in Chico, California, Joseph Igbineweka, 23, a Nigerian-born senior political science major and college student president at the California State University at Chico, had racist slurs hurled at him by two men and then was knifed repeatedly. It was initially believed that Mr. Igbineweka was attacked by Barry Sayavong, who is originally from Laos. Sayavong was a stranger to Mr. Igbineweka, and the attack was reportedly unprovoked; the victim was walking alone when he was allegedly accosted by two men. Police are focusing on two men who were with Sayavong before fleeing.
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April 18, 2010: Sayavong was arrested on the corner of West Sacramento Avenue and Citrus Avenue, and he was initially arrested by police on a charge of suspicion of attempted murder as a hate crime.
Following his arrest, Sayavong was held at the Butte County Jail in Oroville, California, on $250,000 bail.
April 22, 2010: Sayavong was not arraigned on any charges by the Butte County District Attorney's office after the victim and multiple witnesses were unable to positively identify Sayavong as the attacker and after detectives failed to find blood on Sayavong's clothing. The District Attorney's office has said that while no charges were filed against Barry Sayavong, he remains a person of interest. Sayavong's attorney, Tracy Tully-Davis, said Sayavong is owed an apology for having his "reputation smeared." |
Kevin Novotny, 20, Kailua-Kona, HI.
April 30, 2010.
In high school, he was on his school's cross county team at Kealakehe High School. |
Southern Oregon University, Ashland, OR.
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Second-degree Criminal mischief.
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April 30, 2010: Kevin Novotny and another white Southern Oregon University student, Blake Adkins, were arrested and charged with second-degree criminal mischief for scrawling anti-gay graffiti in the Diamond Hall and Hawthorne Hall dormitories at Southern Oregon University (Ashland campus) on or about April 8, 2010 when the graffiti was discovered by dormitory residents. Diamond Hall had several gay student residents living there at the time of the anti-gay crime.
May 19, 2010: Kevin Novotny, a theater major at SOU at the time, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief and was fined $400.
May 27, 2010: Novotny faced a university disciplinary hearing, and the board decided to allow him back to school with conditions. The board said that Novotny must: live off-campus; complete community service projects with the university's Queer Resource Center, Women's Resource Center, and Multicultural Center; perform 25 additional hours of community service; and, attend a gay-rights meeting in October 2010 at the university. Failure to comply with these conditions will result in Novotny's' suspension from Southern Oregon University for one year. |
Blake R. Adkins, 19, Klamath Falls, OR.
April 30, 2010.
In high school he played ice hockey; and, he was on his school's track and field team at Henley High School.
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Southern Oregon University, Ashland, OR.
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Second-degree Criminal mischief; Second-degree Intimidation. |
April 30, 2010: Adkins was charged with second-degree criminal mischief and second-degree intimidation after he and another SOU student admitted to writing anti-gay graffiti on walls and doors in two campus domitories on or about April 8, 2010, when the graffiti was discovered by dormitory residents.
May 19, 2010: Blake Adkins, a Henley High School graduate, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief and was fined $400. The intimidation charge was dropped.
May 27, 2010: Adkins faced a university disciplinary hearing, and the board decided to allow him back to school with conditions. The board said that Adkins must: live off-campus; complete community service projects with the university's Queer Resource Center, Women's Resource Center, and Multicultural Center; perform 25 additional hours of community service; and, attend a gay-rights meeting in October 2010 at the university. Failure to comply with these conditions will result in Adkins' suspension from Southern Oregon University for one year.
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Terrance Calhoun, 22, Houston, TX.
June 30, 2010.
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Houston Community College, Houston, TX.
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First-degree aggravated robbery. On June 22, 2010, Terrance Calhoun allegedly put a knife to his victim's throat and then pushed him to the floor, and then allegedly repeatedly beat and kicked his victim before robbing him of his wallet which contained credit cards that were later used to make purchases. The victim, who was also a HCC student at the time and who suffered a concussion in the attack, said that in addition to being called a "faggot" Terrance Calhoun told him during the hate crime attack, "Hey queer, I need you to be quiet, cooperate, and give me all your valuables." |
June 30, 2010: Terrance Calhoun, an African-American man who has a prior conviction for drug possession in 2007, was charged with first-degree aggravated robbery after he allegedly attacked at knifepoint a transgendered man, Lance Reyna, 29, a political science student and GLBT activist at Houston Community College, in a campus bathroom on June 22, 2010. Despite the hate crime elements involved in the case, Calhoun was not charged with a hate crime, because the Harris County District Attorney's Office said: (a) it would be less difficult to secure a conviction without a hate crime charge; (b) Calhoun already faces a lengthy prison sentence if convicted; and, (c) the hate crime element can be introduced at sentencing to enhance Calhoun's sentence, if there is a conviction. Calhoun, who allegedly confessed to the robbery, faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison, if convicted.
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Michael Enright, 21, Brewster, NY.
August 24, 2010.
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School of Visual Arts, New York, NY.
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Arrested on charges of attempted murder as a hate crime, assault with a weapon as a hate crime, second-degree aggravated harassment because of race and religion, and criminal possession of a weapon. On August 24, 2010, in a taxi on East 42nd Street in New York City, a white man, Michael Enright, allegedly asked a New York City cab driver, Ahmed H. Sharif, 43, if he was Muslim and when Mr. Sharif confirmed that he was Muslim, Enright allegedly attempted to murder his Asian victim by slashing Mr. Sharif in the throat, right arm, left forearm, right thumb and upper lip immediately after Enright shouted the Arabic greeting, "Assalamu Alaikum," and "Consider this a checkpoint." Enright, who was locked in the taxi after the attack which allowed police to arrest him at the scene, had been embedded with a U.S. military troop in Afghanistan earlier in 2010, and ironically he had also volunteered for an interfaith group promoting religious tolerance in New York. Mr. Sharif and Enright were taken to Bellevue Hospital after the attack; Mr. Sharif, a father of four, was taken there to treat his injuries, and Enright was taken there because he was heavily intoxicated. |
August 25, 2010: Michael Enright, a senior film student who had been living with his parents in Brewster, NY, was arraigned in State Supreme Court in Manhattan on charges of second-degree attempted murder as a hate crime, first-degree assault as a hate crime, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. One media outlet also reported that Enright was also charged with aggravated harassment. Enright did not enter a plea and he was held without bail following his arraignment.
August 30, 2010: Enright was indicted in the Manhattan Criminal Court on charges of second-degree attempted murder as a hate crime and first-degree assault as a hate crime. The indictment is expected to be unsealed on September 22, 2010. If convicted, Enright could face up to 25 years in prison.
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