A Suspect in Atlanta Hate Crime Identified
One of three Atlanta gang members who allgedly committed a hate crime against a 20-year-old gay man has been identified, the Atlanta Crime Examiner reported.
Federal investigators say Dareal Damare Williams, 17, has fled Georgia, however.
A week after the crime took place, two other men who are believed involved in the attack were caught. Christopher Cain, 19, was arrested and on Feb. 17 Dorian Morange turned himself into the authorities.
FBI agents in Pittsburg, Pa., say that Williams is hiding out in the state and the agency issued an alert earlier this week.
"Williams, a known member of the 'Pittsburgh Jack City Gang', is believed to be staying with friends and relatives in the Erie Area," officials said. "The "Pittsburgh Jack City Gang" also known as "Jack City 1029" is a violent street gang based out of Atlanta, Georgia."
Brandon White was brutally attacked outside a grocery store in Atlanta's Pittsburg community. The incident was caught on camera and was uploaded to the Internet, which caused the video to go viral across the web.
The gang members beat White while someone yelled, "No faggots in Jack City." The victim was kicked and punched until he fell to the ground. Another person then dropped a tire on him.
Several local LGBT activists were appalled by the hate crime, including Devin Barrington-Ward.
"There were gay slurs thrown toward him," Barrington-Ward told the local media. "There were punches. There were kicks. These young men committed a hate crime. There shouldn't be a debate about that."
White spoke about the incident in a news conference earlier this month. He said that he left home soon after the attack and has not returned due to his fear.
"If a straight person can walk to the store and not have a problem then I should be able to feel the same," White said. "I could have died that day. Anyone could have died that day. They don't know what they do to people. They're monsters," he said about his attackers.
"He is doing what a lot of us would never do. He is standing up with courage," Greg Smith, the executive director of the HIV Intervention Project told members of the Atlanta Black LGBT said.
"Understand this, he is saying, 'I want to do something. Don't treat me like a victim.' His issue is everybody keeps looking at him like he was weak. He is not weak. Don't treat him like he is weak. Don't treat him like he is broken. Ain't nothing wrong with him besides his courage being broken. He wants to stand up and do something," Smith told the crowd.
Here is an Atlanta news report of the crime that includes much of the footage of the beating: