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Two Arrested In Covington,KY Anti-LGBT Attacks

08/21/10-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
Police in Covington, Kentucky, just the Ohio River from Cincinnati, are investigating a knife attack that they believe was motivated by anti-gay feelings. One of the suspects, Timothy Searp, has already been charged with alcohol intoxication. The other suspect, Devlin Burke of Newport, has been charged with three counts of second-degree assault. Burke has a long history of violence. He is known to Maurice Powell, who he assaulted in 2003. Powell stated of Burke “I think of like an American terrorist, like he’s an outlaw. . .While they (were) assaulting me, they were yelling out racial slurs and telling me that they should kill me.”

His attackers, including Burke, wielded customized bats which stated Imperial Klans Of America on them. Burke was previously convicted of killing his mother’s boyfriend in a drunken fight.

The latest attacks were on a pair of women. Burke and Searp assaulted one woman, kicking and punching her, and then a second woman. When two men tried to intervene, Burke slashed them with a knife. One was wounded on the arm, the other in the abdomen. In total, four people were arrested after the attack which began at around 12:50am Saturday. According to Ron Padgett, a resident of MainStrasse, “The attacks against my friends I can’t help to notice have been within one block of a local gay bar. I’m sorry, but our community is being targeted.” More residents of the area have begun to buy stun guns.

The latest attacks follow a string of anti-LGBT attacks in the area. The assault began when the suspects yelled anti-homosexual epithets at a group of four people at the Shell gas station on Pike Street. They then went on to attack the two Convington women who received minor injuries.

It is unclear if Charles Clark, 58, and Erica Abney, 27, were part of the actual assaults. Clark was arrested for possession of a controlled substance and Abney was arrested for disorderly conduct. According to Police Chief Lee Russo “What happened was just egregious. I’m very sorry for what those folks had to endure. What I was happy with was the fact that when they called police, within seconds we had several units on scene and were able to stop the suspects from leaving the scene.”

One anonymous resident of the area “We’re starting to feel they’re targeting the homosexual community, mainly because these attacks are happening in the radius of local gay bars. It is happening to gay individuals.”

Police have responded by stepping up patrols in the area and been making arrests more consistently. In July, residents and city officials held a meeting over the issue. Carl Fox, the former owner of Rosie’s Bar in Covington, asserts that the problems are nothing new. Back in the 1990′s, when he owned the bar, patrons were assaulted and property vandalized over sexual orientation. He stated “I can’t tell you how many times I called police over Rosie’s Tavern to complain about somebody doing something to my customers, to my tenants or to myself, whether it be simple intimidation or literally attacking them, but using words and doing it such a vicious way that it was obvious it was based on our orientation.”

Lieutenant Colonel Spike Jones state “We’re taking the issue very seriously. This isn’t the type of activity that we want our community to be known for.”

Unlike when Fox was the owner of Rosie’s, today’s police are taking anti-LGBT assaults and violence more seriously in many locations. Russo has asserted that the police are taking the resident’s concerns more seriously, and that he will continue to meet with the residents about their concerns. Russo said “I think one thing we hit on is fear. We hear discussions about citizens who are arming themselves and that is extremely concerning to me. I want to take this energy and instead of moving it into a negative direction, to move things in a more positive direction.”

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