First Christian Church in Honolulu, Hawaii, was torched last week, reports the Hawaii Channel. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) fears the fire may be a hate crime. The church's openly gay leader, the Rev. Vaughn Beckman, is a plaintiff in a case the ACLU filed against the city challenging a policy banning gay groups in city-sponsored parades. Police and the FBI said there is no evidence that the fire was a hate crime.
A 22-year-old man remains in the Breckinridge County, Ky., jail in lieu of bail. Josh Cottrell was charged with the murder of Guinn 'Richie' Phillips, a gay man who allegedly made a pass at Cottrell, reports the Louisville Courier-Journal. Relatives said Cottrell confessed to them that he killed Phillips because Phillips was gay and made a pass. Phillips was reported missing in June. He was found a week later stuffed in a suitcase.
Two men who egged a gay student group's booth at Cal Poly in February will pay a fine and perform community service, reports the Tribune. William Bugenig, 22, and Nicolas Taliaferro, 20, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor civil-rights violations and vandalism. Each will serve 18 months of probation, pay a $300 fine, and perform 100 hours of community service for the AIDS Support Network.
A former Gwinnett County, Ga., sheriff remains under house arrest for the alleged rape of a woman who says the former sheriff said he raped her because she was a lesbian, reports the Athens-Banner Herald. Derrick McGriff, 25, was charged with rape, false imprisonment, aggravated assault with intent to rape, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and violation of oath of office. The alleged victim claimed McGriff said he would teach her a lesson for being a lesbian. McGriff's attorney's argue that the sex was consensual. The District Attorney may ask the judge to add five years to a possible penalty and require that 90 percent of a potential sentence be served because of a 2002 anti-bias law.
California unveiled a small cemetery marker last week honoring gay veterans who died in the line of duty, reports the Sacramento Bee. The foot-long marker was placed at the California Veterans Memorial, but gay-rights activists have taken sides both for and against the move. Those in favor of the marker say recognition of LGBT soldiers is long overdue. Those opposed to the marker argue that soldiers should not be honored solely because they're gay.
Gay TV is finally here, according to the Boston Globe. After Viacom put its plans on hold for an all-gay cable network, a film company, Regent Entertainment, picked up where Viacom left off. Filmmakers Paul Colichman and Stephen J. Jarchow pioneered the here! channel on DirecTV satellite television. Pay Per View programming started last week on channel 170. Subscribers to DirecTV may pay an additional $3.99 per movie. Movies will all feature at least one gay character or theme that affirms gay people, producers said. Colichman hopes to produce free programs, including a 30-minute nightly talk show, that will air on channel 170 and on cable systems in the future.
California Gubernatorial hopeful Arnold Schwarzenegger came out about a few issues of importance to segments of the gay community, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. Schwarzenegger came out in favor of medical marijuana, which proponents say helps some AIDS patients suffer less. Like former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, Schwarzenegger said he supports civil unions but opposes gay marriage. Though the state senate is considering same-sex partnership legislation, California already has a law that prevents the state from recognizing same-sex marriage.
A Wyoming teen boy is expected to appear in court this month on charges of stalking another teen boy who wears 'short shorts,' reports KMGH. Attorneys for Michael Grissom, 19, argued in court papers that their client was led to offer harassing comments to Jimmy L. Bryan, 18, because 'he wears feminine attire on occasions and of course this really upsets young heterosexual males.' Court papers charge that Grissom yelled, 'wish it wasn't illegal to kill fags out of innocent fun' at Bryan. If convicted, Grissom could serve six months in jail and pay a $750 fine.
Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Janis Ian married her partner of 14 years, Patricia Snyder, in Toronto last week, reports Gay.com .
A former Colorado University (CU) Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) member will have to pay back more than $30,000 because she's gay, reports the Daily Camera. Mara Boyd said she realized, after her sophomore year in college and after graduating ROTC basic training with distinction, that she was a lesbian. She came out to her commander and was discharged. The Michigan native received the funds as part of a three-year military scholarship. Boyd left CU and now works as a fulltime gardener to pay her scholarship debt.
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