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AMY CAVANAUGH
Friday, October 03, 2008
A
shooting
in
Baltimore
that
left
a
50-year-old
gay
man
in
critical
condition
Sept.
22
is
being
investigated
as
a
hate
crime,
according
to
police.
Baltimore
Police
Department
spokesperson
Officer
Nicole
Monroe
said
the
shooting
occurred
along
the
600
block
of
N.
Howard
Street,
where
the
man
was
walking
with
his
same-sex
partner,
holding
hands,
when
another
man
on
a
bicycle
approached
the
couple
and
engaged
them
in
conversation.
The
Associated
Press
reported
that
the
victim’s
partner
walked
ahead
several
feet
before
he
heard
what
sounded
like
two
gunshots
and
saw
his
companion
was
injured.
The
man
on
the
bicycle
fled
on
foot
and
returned
later
for
his
bicycle,
before
leaving
the
scene.
The
victim
received
gunshot
wounds
to
the
neck
and
abdomen,
the
Associated
Press
reported.
Monroe,
who
refused
to
name
the
victim,
said
Wednesday
that
the
man’s
condition
“is
still
serious
but
stable.
He’s
making
progress
but
sustained
some
very
serious
injuries.”
She
said
the
man
was
“awake
but
medicated
and
is
still
intubated,”
noting
that
he
has
attempted
to
communicate
and
has
shown
significant
improvement.
“He’s
still
in
[an
Intensive
Care
Unit]
and
in
very
guarded
condition,”
said
Carrie
Evans,
policy
director
at
Equality
Maryland,
who
has
followed
the
case.
“We
have
every
reason
to
believe
he’s
going
to
recover,
but
because
of
where
his
injuries
were
and
the
surgery
he
had
to
have,
he’s
still
in
ICU
to
watch
over
everything.”
Although
the
circumstances
surrounding
the
shooting
remain
unclear,
Baltimore
police
have
said
they
have
reason
to
believe
that
the
victim’s
sexual
orientation
played
a
role.
Monroe
said
that
no
arrests
have
been
made,
but
noted
that
“it
looks
like
the
case
is
progressing,
but
no
suspects
are
listed.”
The
shooting
comes
shortly
after
the
shooting
death
of
Tony
Randolph
Hunter,
who
was
shot
near
a
D.C.
gay
bar.
Some
gays
in
Baltimore,
however,
said
there
is
no
increase
in
hate
crimes
against
gays
there.
Craig
Wiley,
executive
director
of
the
Gay,
Lesbian,
Bisexual
&
Transgender
Community
Center
of
Baltimore
and
Central
Maryland,
said
the
shooting
was
“the
first
one
in
quite
awhile,”
and
because
it
was
a
shooting,
“it
rose
to
the
spotlight.”
“I
think
there’s
definitely
more
that
goes
on
than
gets
reported,”
he
said.
“It’s
a
matter
of
reporting
it,
and
this
incident
takes
the
limelight
for
the
severity
of
it.”
Evans
agreed
that
media
attention
could
make
a
difference
in
public
perception
of
crime
rates.
“As
a
Baltimorean,”
she
said,
“I
don’t
feel
any
different
when
I’m
in
Mount
Vernon
or
when
I’m
with
my
partner
than
I
did
six
months
or
a
year
ago.”
Felicia
French,
vice
president
of
the
Baltimore
Mayor’s
Task
Force
for
LGBT
Issues,
attributed
the
perception
of
an
increase
in
hate
crimes
to
people
being
“more
aware
and
more
willing
to
speak
up.”
“I
don’t
think
it’s
an
issue
of
a
rise
in
hate
crimes
spreading
from
D.C.
to
Baltimore,
because
there
have
been
hate
crimes
in
Baltimore
for
a
while
now,”
she
said.
“People
are
tired
of
this
and
are
starting
to
get
outraged.
There’s
been
an
atmosphere
of
fear
that
we
should
not
say
anything,
but
now
people
are
throwing
up
their
hands
and
starting
to
speak
up.”
Evans
said
that
the
shooting
and
the
May
attack
of
a
gay
man
outside
of
Patterson
Park
in
Baltimore
have
helped
the
police
department
realize
the
unique
role
an
officer
working
exclusively
with
the
gay
community
could
serve.
Unlike
the
D.C.
Metropolitan
Police
Department,
the
Baltimore
Police
Department
does
not
have
a
gay
liaison
unit,
but
Evans
said
she
expects
one
will
be
formed
soon.
She
noted
that
a
police
officer
working
in
the
community
would
be
able
to
notice
trends
in
crime
and
have
a
network
of
connections
to
draw
on
when
crimes
do
occur.
French
said
the
Baltimore
Police
Department
“have
their
hands
full,”
adding
that
that
members
of
the
community
need
to
get
involved
and
help
police.
“The
only
way
to
get
things
resolved
is
if
you
saw
or
heard
something,
to
say
something,”
she
said.
“Don’t
be
overzealous,
but
if
you
really
have
seen
something
that
is
not
cool
on
the
street,
make
a
report.
You
don’t
have
to
give
a
name,
but
you
never
can
tell
if
the
person
victimized
by
the
crime
needs
help.”
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