Dec 05, 2003   | COMMENTS     

MIAMI (AP) — A Christian fundamentalist who was trained as an Army Ranger pleaded innocent last week to bomb and weapons charges in an alleged plot to blow up abortion clinics, gay bars and churches he deemed disloyal. Prosecutors said 35-year-old Stephen John Jordi described himself as a terrorist and planned a bombing spree across the eastern United States. He allegedly was on the brink of carrying out the plan when he was arrested Nov. 11. Authorities said that on the day of his arrest, Jordi and a government informant bought gasoline cans, flares, starter fluid and propane tanks, and the informant sold Jordi a pistol and silencer. Marc Seitles, Jordi’s attorney, argues that Jordi repeatedly said he did not want to do anything illegal and that the informant offered money to Jordi’s family and a plane ticket to Jordi so he could protest outside the Florida prison where abortion-provider killer Paul Hill was executed.

Canadian gay activists hold vigil as alleged attacker appears in court
NEW BRUNSWICK, Canada — Gay leaders in this city held a vigil Nov. 29 as the alleged attacker of a federal lawmaker appeared in court, the Globe & Mail reported. The accused assailant previously was vocal in denouncing same-sex marriage, and activists are calling the beating of federal MP Andy Scott a gay bashing. “You’ve got a straight man that stands up for our rights and he gets [attacked],” Art Vautour-Toole told the Globe & Mail. Vautour-Toole himself faces charges from a protest that erupted when he tried to insist on taking his husband’s name. “But that happens once a week here in the city of Moncton, gay-bashing happens but they turn a blind eye to it,” he told the Globe & Mail. Scott is married and has two sons. He recently helped defeat a motion in the House of Commons that would have reserved marriage for opposite-sex couples, the Globe & Mail reported. He was attacked Nov. 22 and left bruised and battered. Terry Curtis, 48, was arrested and charged with assault, theft, mischief and uttering death threats, the newspaper reported.

Former N.C. gay activist gets 5-year prison sentence
STATESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Andrew Reyes, an accountant and former chair of Mecklenburg County’s Democratic Party, was sentenced Monday to almost five years in federal prison for bank fraud and tax evasion. Reyes made a rapid rise in Charlotte in the late 1990s, progressing from gay activist to major party donor to local Democratic leader before disappearing mysteriously in May 2001. Reyes said little other than brief responses to questions from U.S. District Court Judge Lacy Thornburg. Reyes pleaded guilty early this year to 15 counts of bank fraud, three counts of income tax evasion and a single count of conspiracy to commit income tax evasion. Federal prosecutors agreed to the four-year, nine-month sentence, saying he had provided substantial assistance that could lead to more criminal prosecutions. The charges stemmed from Reyes’ handling of the financial affairs of the late Douglas King of New Hampshire. In his guilty plea, Reyes admitted diverting $3.6 million to himself between 1998 and 2000.

Convicted S.D. gay murderer says death sentence illegal
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — The felon considered first in line for execution in South Dakota has appeals pending in both state and federal courts, but those efforts are in neutral. Charles Russell Rhines has filed habeas corpus petitions in state and federal courts, alleging violations of his constitutional right to a fair trial and that he illegally received the death penalty. Among several issues Rhines raises in the pending habeas corpus claims, he said the defense team should have objected to evidence that showed he is gay because that may have inflamed jurors. But state Deputy Attorney General Craig Eichstadt said a recent 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling may force Rhines to abandon his state habeas suit. Because of a 1996 federal law that streamlines the appellate process in death-penalty cases by limiting repeated appeals, Rhines risks losing his federal appeal if he does not drop the state habeas corpus, Eichstadt says. Rhines was convicted for the 1992 slaying of Donnivan Schaeffer, 22, during a doughnut shop burglary.

Third man charged in Fla. for attacking gay couple
TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. (AP) — A third man was charged in the beating of a gay couple at a Greek restaurant in what police are calling a hate crime. Michael Kitsos, 21, of Tarpon Springs turned himself in to police. Kitsos, along with John A. Himonetos, 21, and Stamatios N. Kannis, 22, punched and kicked ...