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Loading ...Anger management class ordered in Prop 8 sign beating
03.17.2009 3:30pm EDT
(Torrance, California) A California man who yelled gay epithets and beat a gay marriage supporter during the campaign against Proposition 8 last fall has avoided jail under a deal with prosecutors.
Joseph Storm, 23, has been ordered to attend a tolerance course and take anger management classes after pleading no contest to a charge of assault as a hate crime.In addition, he was placed on probation for three years and ordered to perform more than 100 hours of community service.
At a preliminary hearing last December, the 22-year-old victim, whose name was being withheld for his own safety, testified that he was terrified he would die in the attack.
The victim said that he was wearing a “No on 8″ button and passed a sign in front of home with a “Yes of 8″ sign in front of it. The victim said that he gave the finger to the sign and was then attacked by Storm, who was coming down the street from the opposite direction.
The victim said Storm hit him with the sign, then with his fists and then began choking him.
During the attack, the victim testified, Storm yelled homophobic and racial slurs at him, although he is not African American.
The victim also said Storm told him that if he ever saw him again “it’s gonna be worse.”
Both Storm and the victim knew each other – they had attended the same high school, but both denied ever having prior contact.
After the attack ended, the victim said he went to the home of a neighbor, fearing Storm would discover where he lived if he went to his own home. A friend took him to the hospital.
The attack was one of a number of incidents reported by both sides in the Proposition 8 battle.
Proposition 8 passed in November with a 52 percent vote. It bans same-sex marriage in California and the state currently is considering a constitutional challenge to the vote.
On Monday, Santa Clara County released statistics showing a three-fold spike in homophobic hate crimes in over the past year. The increase was blamed on the fallout over Prop 8.
Statewide statistics will be released later this year by the California Attorney General’s office but LGBT rights advocates say they expect them to show a similar increase.
I wish he didn’t flip the bird to the sign. What do you want to bet that, if he hadn’t done anything provocative, the sentence would have been harsher (due to the “hate crime” verbal attack)?
OverMORGAN:
Thanks for your input and have a very nice day.
You can bet that if this was a racial beating rather than a gay-bashing this guy certainly would have served jailtime. Just all the more evidence, in my opinion, of how little support our communicty receives from the judicial branch.
Not hard enough. ALL THE ABOVE PROBATION AND COMMUNITY SERVICE, ANGER MANAGEMENT, TOLERANCE COURSE AFTER 1 MO IN JAIL PLUS A RESTRAINING ORDER TO STAY AWAY FROM THE VICTIM PLUS NOT TO CONTACT THE VICTIM BY ANY AND ALL MEANS BE IT PHONE, E-MAIL, LETTER OR VISIT. AND BACK TO JAIL IF ANY OF THE ABOVE IS NOT FULFILLED
Physically assaulting a person must be treated with the severity it deserves.
Christian Love: Agree with us or we’ll hurt you. How Islamic.
Where is our liberalism and compassion when it comes to treatment of convicts? The American prison system is a violent place that makes its population more violent and more likely to be rearrested. This was a violent man who committed a violent act, and should we send him to a place like prison which has been shown to make people *more* violent? In prison, that’s all he would learn, and after he’s released, he may kill the next gay rights defender he tries to beat up. Tolerance and anger management courses might be entirely appropriate in this situation. We should try to genuinely rehabilitate convicts before we consider tossing them in glorified oubliettes.
Morgan, as a Christian myself, it is not a competition. One does not have to choose between your favorite watering hole and your church.
I am truthfully getting where I can’t stand MORGAN, geez you are worse then them… shove YOUR Church up your ass sideways.
I am tired of reading your sanctimonious blah blah about your church. ENOUGH ALREADY!
You really make me want to be an Atheist so bad. PLEASE STOP IT! I’ve heard the Christians say they don’t care about Gay ppl. “love the sinner, hate the sin” bullcrap and how they are tired of us “throwing IT in their faces” etc..
Therefore, I really don’t want to come to LGBT sites and deal with gay fuckholes like MORGAN shoving their bullcrap on me. Why don’t you go to your Awesome Church website and give them your bullshit!
Thanks I feel better.
peace to all.
Morgan,
I’d be more interested in reading your comments if they weren’t so santimonious.
Jules Randolph, as a gay Christian in a wonderful,loving and welcoming church, I do not agree with you. I would not trade my good church for 100 bars.
Ah, another fine example of Christian love and tolerance.
The christianist attacker is a prop 8 supporter, and a father? He sounds like a horrible sexist role model for his children, yet the employees of the christianist corporation would defend him and support him for his “courageous” attack.
Christianists are absolutely insane, and stupid!
What a joke. The guy BEAT UP AND CHOKED someone – that’s called “aggravated assault” for those playing along at home – and he gets a slap on the wrist? What a joke.
Those who supported Prop 8 are directly responsible for the upsurge in hate crimes against gays in this state. Shame on all of you for supporting that law and people like this criminal.
I want to know if this was handled by the L.A. County District Attorney or the Torrance City Attorney. This was a hate crime and the punishment does not fit the crime in my opinion. If it was handled through the county, I want to work to replace our D.A.
I saw his mug shot yesterday and this brave and courageous defender of proposition 8 is also a married man and proud father who all love him at home when they’re not in the hospital due to domestic violence or should I say domestic misunderstandings. it looks like protection from the law, protection from the constitution is; may; can be great, but the real protection needed here is the protection from animals, how or what can one do to train these animals to become human beings.
Please don’t lose hope and keep fighting we all need you you are the new freedom fighters.