14 Year-Old Murderer Pleads “Not Guilty”

The 14-year-old who shot and killed classmate, Larry King, point blank, in front of a whole class of peers plead not guilty Thursday as his trial got underway in California.

Brandon McInerney is being tried as an adult in a Ventura County Court Judge and could face life in prison even though LGBT activists had urged that the boy be dealt with by a juvenile court.

Thursday, his defence lawyer said the decision to try him for murder and not manslaughter was effectively a “death sentence.”

As you may know, Lawrence King, the 15 year-old, who self-identified as gay and wore feminine clothing, was shot in the head on February 12th during a lesson, by McInerney, his classmate at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard, California.

The Executive Director of GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) Kevin Jennings commented: As a nation, we’ve had our heads in the sand for far too long. We need to do everything we can to prevent something like this from happening again.”

Mixed views have poured in as to the fate of the killer, but most agree, an example of “Zero Tolerance” for hate crimes must be set in order to help prevent future killings.  

You may also remember Angie Zapata, who was beat to death by a man who “snapped” after discovering that Zapata was actually a male.

Allen Ray Andrade to Face Hate Crime Charges

The Colorado Anti-Violence Program (CAVP) applauds Weld County District Attorney, Kenneth Buck, prosecutors and law enforcement for filing hate crime charges against 31-year-old Allen Ray Andrade in the beating death of 18-year-old Latina transgender woman, Angie Zapata.

The Zapata family expressed their relief that both first degree murder and hate crime charges have been filed. Angie’s sister, Monica Murguia, added, “Unfortunately, it’s not getting any easier. I thought we’d be done after we buried my sister. It feels like we have to relive it every day.”

Get the rest of this story at ru12.org, or read more about this brutal murder here.

Suspect: Transgendered Teen Made Me Snap

A man accused in the beating death of a transgender teenager he met online snapped when he learned in person that the 18-year-old living as a woman had male sex organs, authorities in Colorado said Wednesday.

Allen Ray Andrade, 32, is currently charged with second-degree murder in the death of Angie Zapata, who was born Justin Zapata but lived as a young woman. Andrade is being held without bond. He could face an additional hate crime charge.

Andrade admitted to investigators that he beat Zapata first with his fists and then with a fire extinguisher after he grabbed her genitalia and discovered Zapata had a penis.

Read more on Zapata here at gayagenda.com.

Colorado Mourns After Brutal Murder in Greely

Over 200 people gathered on last night (Wednesday) to mourn 18-year-old Angie Zapata’s death. Angie was the transgender person who was beaten to death last week in Greely, CO.

Fort Collins Now reports: “Police did not say whether Zapata’s gender identity played a part in the homicide. Zapata’s sister, Monica, was quoted in a press release from the Colorado Anti-Violence Program. ‘We want to get the whole community involved to find this person who hurt my sister and to let everyone be aware that all she wanted was to be beautiful. We want this violence to end.

The 2006 FBI Hate Crime Statistics show an 18% increase in hate crimes against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. LGBT people now make up 16% of hate crimes in the United States.

Find out more at hatecrimesbill.org.