A
20-year-old
gay
man
from
Philadelphia,
who
pleaded
guilty
last
December
to
the
June
2003
stabbing
death
of
D.C.
accountant
Michael
Kainer,
was
scheduled
to
be
sentenced
Friday
in
D.C.
Superior
Court.
Luis
Villafane
acknowledged
working
for
a
gay
male
escort
service
in
Philadelphia
at
the
time
he
confessed
to
killing
Kainer
inside
Kainer’s
carriage
house
apartment
on
the
100
block
of
U
Street,
NW.
The
stabbing
occurred
hours
before
the
two
were
scheduled
to
fly
to
California
to
buy
a
stash
of
illegal
drugs,
which
Kainer,
who
was
gay,
planned
to
sell
in
D.C.,
according
to
police
and
court
documents.
Police
sources
said
Villafane
and
Kainer
met
through
the
D.C.
gay
club
scene
and
became
friends,
but
Kainer
was
not
believed
to
be
one
of
Villafane’s
escort
customers.
Villafane’s
lawyer
argued
in
a
court
hearing
last
year
that
Villafane
committed
the
murder
in
an
“act
of
passion”
after
Kainer
and
two
other
men
allegedly
drugged
and
gang
raped
him.
Friends
of
Kainer’s
dispute
this
allegation,
calling
Kainer
a
peaceful
man
who
would
never
have
committed
a
rape.
Police
said
Villafane
stole
$40,000
in
cash
and
an
expensive
plasma
television
from
Kainer’s
apartment
after
the
stabbing.
Investigators
listed
robbery
as
the
motive
for
the
killing,
saying
Villafane
made
plans
to
buy
a
car
and
rent
a
place
in
Florida
beforehand,
indicating
he
had
plotted
the
murder
in
advance.
A
spokesperson
for
the
United
States
Attorney’s
office
said
prosecutors
reduced
the
charge
against
Villafane
from
first-degree
to
second-degree
murder,
in
exchange
for
a
guilty
plea,
after
determining
it
would
be
difficult
to
obtain
a
conviction
on
first-degree
murder.
Villafane
was
set
to
appear
before
Superior
Court
Judge
Robert
Richter
at
9:30
a.m.
Friday,
where
he
faces
a
possible
maximum
sentence
of
40
years
in
prison.
LOU
CHIBBARO
JR.
A
coalition
of
gay
and
straight
nightclub
and
bar
owners
said
the
D.C.
Council
made
improvements
but
did
not
go
far
enough
this
week
in
easing
restrictions
on
businesses
that
promote
a
vibrant
nightlife
atmosphere
in
the
city.
The
Council
passed
a
bill
on
April
20
ratifying
a
series
of
regulations
aimed
at
implementing
the
city’s
alcoholic
beverage
control
law.
The
Council
action
followed
a
lengthy
process
of
deliberations
in
which
D.C.
nightlife
enthusiasts
became
a
vocal
force
for
reforming
what
they
said
was
a
process
stacked
in
favor
of
a
small
group
of
civic
activists
who
have
long
opposed
neighborhood
based
clubs
offering
dancing
or
live
entertainment.
D.C.
Council
member
Sharon
Ambrose
(D-Ward
6),
whose
Council
committee
crafted
the
legislation
and
regulations,
called
the
bill
a
balanced
compromise
between
citizens
who
want
quiet
neighborhoods
and
those
who
want
lively
entertainment
zones
integrated
into
residential
areas.
Among
other
things,
the
bill
removed
a
mini-referendum
process,
which
allowed
neighborhood
opponents
to
vote
on
whether
to
allow
a
bar
or
nightclub
to
receive
a
license
to
operate,
regardless
of
whether
they
had
evidence
the
business
would
cause
harm
to
the
area.
But
the
bill
did
not
include
provisions
sought
by
nightlife
advocates
that
would
provide
specific
protections
for
music,
dancing
and
other
forms
of
entertainment
in
neighborhood
restaurants
or
clubs.
“The
Council’s
action
has
initiated
an
ongoing
process
of
restoring
common-sense
to
the
law,
and
the
ABC
Board
now
has
the
tools
to
adjudicate
in
favor
of
establishments
despite
the
opposition
of
nightlife
opponents,”
said
Mark
Lee,
owner
of
the
D.C.
gay
dance
party
Lizard
Lounge
and
a
nightlife
advocate.
LOU
CHIBBARO
JR.
Following
the
lead
of
their
gay
congressional
peers
on
the
House
side,
a
group
of
Senate
staffers
has
created
a
professional
association
to
further
promote
gay
visibility
across
Capitol
Hill.
The
idea
for
GLASS,
Gays,
Lesbians
&
Allies
Senate
Staff,
came
shortly
after
federal
lawmakers
proposed
a
constitutional
amendment
barring
gay
marriage,
but
the
nonpartisan
group
has
pledged
to
remain
social
and
educational
in
nature.
“We
hope
that
this
caucus
will
serve
as
a
catalyst
for
transforming
the
Senate’s
culture
to
a
more
inclusive
and
open
environment
by
bringing
together
people
to
share
experiences,”
said
co-founder
Lynden
Armstrong,
a
staffer
for
New
Mexico
Sen.
Pete
Domenici,
a
prominent
Republican.
In
1993,
gay
House
employees
formed
their
own
alliance,
the
Lesbian
&
Gay
Congressional
Staff
Association,
after
several
members
of
Congress
announced
that
they
would
not
employ
gays
in
their
offices.
Since
then,
the
House
group
has
been
registered
as
a
formal
association
of
the
House
and
has
hosted
regular
receptions
and
“brown-bag”
lunch
events
featuring
prominent
lobbyists
and
politicians.
The
GLASS
Caucus
hopes
to
emulate
LGCSA’s
success.
“We’ve
had
a
high
degree
of
invisibility
because
there
hasn’t
been
a
Senate
corollary
to
the
House
group,”
said
the
group’s
other
co-founder,
Mat
Young,
a
staffer
of
Michigan
Sen.
Debbie
Stabenow,
a
Democrat.
The
GLASS
Caucus
will
hold
a
kickoff
reception
in
Room
385
of
the
Russell
Senate
Office
Building
from
5
to
7
p.m.
on
April
28,
at
which
it
expects
the
attendance
of
a
number
of
senators
to
celebrate
its
formation.
Young
emphasized
that
the
group
has
invited
any
Senate
staffer
to
attend,
regardless
of
sexual
orientation.
The
GLASS
Caucus
plans
to
launch
its
Web
site
soon
and
a
confidential
e-mail
listserve
to
inform
its
members
of
upcoming
events.
ADRIAN
BRUNE
