Local
Gay Hill staffer testifies at Marine murder trial
Stabbing occurred on Capitol Hill in 2012
A 29-year-old gay congressional staff member emerged as the star witness this week in a murder trial in D.C. Superior Court of a former U.S. Marine charged with stabbing a fellow Marine to death in April 2012 outside the Marine Barracks on Capitol Hill.
Police and prosecutors charged Pfc. Michael Poth, 21, with second-degree murder while armed for allegedly using a pocketknife to fatally stab Lance Corp. Phillip Bushong, 23, following an altercation on 8th Street, S.E., in which Poth called Bushong an anti-gay name.
Bernard Grimm, Pothās defense attorney, has argued during the trial, which began on Nov. 14, that his client acted in self-defense after Bushong and Bushongās friend, gay congressional staffer Nishith Pandya, 29, appeared ready to assault him during the altercation, according to an account by the Washington Post.
The Post reported that Pandya testified that Poth hurled an anti-gay slur at him and Bushong as Poth walked past them while Bushong and Pandya were standing on the sidewalk outside a bar on 8th Street across the street from the Marine Barracks.
Pandya told the jury he was gay and had no idea how Poth knew his sexual orientation when he made the anti-gay slur, the Post reported. Bushongās family members have said he was not gay. Pandya testified that he and Bushong were āplatonic friends,ā according to the Post.
Before the trial began, a Marine Barracks spokesperson said Poth was in the process of being discharged under less than honorable circumstances prior to the stabbing incident on grounds that he initiated āverbal altercationsā with other Marines and was found to be in possession of a chemical derivative of marijuana.
Other witnesses told police prior to the trial that they saw Poth acting erratically and appeared to be in a heightened state of anger as he walked along 8th Street just before the stabbing incident. A police arrest affidavit said surveillance cameras captured part of the altercation on video, which the Post said was shown to the jury.
In an unusual development, one of the jurors sent a note to Superior Court Judge Russell Canan, who is presiding over the trial, with several questions for Pandya, public records posted on the court’s website shows. It couldn’t immediately be determined if Canan agreed to call Pandya back to the witness stand to answer the juror’s questions.
The trial was expected to continue through most of this week.
Grimm, Pothās lead defense attorney, served as one of the lead defense attorneys in the 2010 trial of three gay men charged with obstruction of justice and evidence tampering in the widely publicized murder of attorney Robert Wone inside their Dupont Circle area townhouse. A judge found the men not guilty following a non-jury trial.
Maryland
Montgomery County police chief discusses arrest of trans student charged with planned school shooting
County executive tells news conference studentās trans identity is irrelevant to criminal charge
Montgomery County, Md., Police Chief Marcus Jones joined other county and law enforcement officials at a news conference on Friday, April 19, to provide details of the police investigation and arrest of an 18-year-old high school student charged two days earlier with threats of mass violence based on information that he allegedly planed a mass shooting at the high school and elementary school he attended in Rockville, Md.
In charging documents and in a press released issued on April 18, Montgomery CountyĀ PoliceĀ identified the arrested student as āAndrea Ye, of Rockville, whose preferred name is Alex Ye.ā
One of the charging documents states that a friend of Ye, who police say came forward as a witness who played a crucial role in alerting authorities to Yeās threats of a school shooting, noted that Ye told the witness that Ye identified as the transgender student he wrote about asĀ aĀ character in a 129-page manifesto outlining plans for a schoolĀ shooting. Police have said Ye told them theĀ manifestoĀ was a fictional story he planned to publish. Ā
At the news conference on Friday, Police Chief Jones and other law enforcement officials, including an FBI official and Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, referred to the student as Alex Ye and Mr. Ye. None of the officials raised the issue of whether Ye identified as a transgender man, seven though one of the police documents identifies Ye as a ābiological female.ā
County Executive Elrich appeared to express the views of the public officials at the news conference when one of the media reporters, during a question-and-answer period, asked Elrich why he and the others who spoke at the news conferment failed to āadmit that this individual was transgender.ā
āBecause itās not a lead,ā Elrich replied, asking if the press and law enforcement authorities should disclose that someone arrested for murder is āa white Christian male whoās heterosexual.ā Elrich stated, āNo, you donāt ā You never publish somebodyās sexual orientation when we talk about this. Why you are focusing on this being a transgender is beyond me. Itās not a news story. It is not a crime to be transgender.ā
The reporter attempted to respond but was cut off by the press conference moderator, who called on someone else to ask the next question.
In his remarks at the press conference Chief Jones praised the so far unidentified witness who was the first to alert authorities about Yeās manifestoĀ appearingĀ to make threats of a mass school shooting.
āNow, this is a situation that highlights the critical importance of vigilance and community involvement in preventing potential tragedies,ā Jones said. āI commend the collaborative efforts of the Montgomery County Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rockville City Police Department, and the Montgomery County Public Schools, as well as Montgomery County Health and Human Services,ā he told the gathering.
āThanks to their swift action and cooperation a potentially catastrophic event was prevented,ā Jones said.
Jones pointed out that during the current school year, police have received reports of 140 threats to the public schools in Montgomery County. He said after a thorough investigation, none of them rose to the level where an arrest was made. Instead, police and school officials took steps to arrange for the student making the threats and their parents to take remedial action, including providing mental health services.
āBut this case is different,ā Jones said. āThis case is entirely different that takes it to a different level. It was a concerned witness who brought this matter to light by rereporting the suspectāsĀ manifestoĀ to the authorities. This underscores the value of community engagement and the āsee something say somethingā approach,ā he said.
Jones mentioned at the press conference that Ye was being held without bond since the time of his arrest but was scheduled to appear in court for a bond hearing on Friday shortly after the press conference took place to determine whether he should be released while awaiting trial or continue to be held.
In his manifesto obtained by police, Ye writes about committing a school shooting, and strategizes how to carry out the act. Ye also contemplates targeting an elementary school and says that he wants to be famous.
In charging documents reported on by WJLA 7 and WBAL 11, the 129-page document, which Ye has referred to as a book of fiction, included writings that said, in part:
“I want to shoot up a school. I’ve been preparing for months. The gun is an AR-15. This gun is going to change lives tomorrow … As I walk through the hallways, I cherry pick the classrooms that are the easiest targets. I need to figure out how to sneak the gun in. I have contemplated making bombs. The instructions to make them are surprisingly available online. I have also considered shooting up my former elementary school because little kids make easier targets. High school’s the best target; I’m the most familiar with the layout. I pace around my room like an evil mastermind. I’ve put so much effort into this. My ultimate goal would be to set the world record for the most amount of kills in a shooting. If I have time, I’ll try to decapitate my victims with a knife to turn the injuries into deaths.”
Maryland
Rockville teen charged with plotting school shooting after FBI finds āmanifestoā
Alex Ye charged with threats of mass violence
BY BRETT BARROUQUERE | A Montgomery County high school student is charged with what police describe as plans to commit a school shooting.
Andrea Ye, 18, of Rockville, whose preferred name is Alex Ye, is charged with threats of mass violence. Montgomery County Police and the FBI arrested Ye Wednesday.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
New D.C. LGBTQ+ bar Crush set to open April 19
An āall-inclusive entertainment haven,ā with dance floor, roof deck
D.C.ās newest LGBTQ+ bar called Crush is scheduled to open for business at 4 p.m. on Friday, April 19, in a spacious, two-story building with a dance floor and roof deck at 2007 14th St., N.W. in one of the cityās bustling nightlife areas.
A statement released by co-owners Stephen Rutgers and Mark Rutstein earlier this year says the new bar will provide an atmosphere that blends ānostalgia with contemporary nightlifeā in a building that was home to a popular music store and radio supply shop.
Rutgers said the opening comes one day after Crush received final approval of its liquor license that was transferred from the Owl Room, a bar that operated in the same building before closing Dec. 31 of last year. The official opening also comes three days after Crush hosted a pre-opening reception for family, friends, and community members on Tuesday, April 16.
Among those attending, Rutgers said, were officials with several prominent local LGBTQ organizations, including officials with the DC Center for the LGBTQ Community, which is located across the street from Crush in the cityās Reeves Center municipal building. Also attending were Japer Bowles, director of the Mayorās Office of LGBTQ Affairs, and Salah Czapary, director of the Mayorās Office of Nightlife and Culture.
Rutgers said Crush plans to hold a grand opening event in a few weeks after he, Rutstein and the barās employees become settled into their newly opened operations.
āStep into a venue where inclusivity isnāt just a promise but a vibrant reality,ā a statement posted on the Crush website says. āImagine an all-inclusive entertainment haven where diversity isnāt just celebrated, itās embraced as the very heartbeat of our venue,ā the statement says. āWelcome to a place where love knows no bounds, and the only color or preference that matters is the vibrant tapestry of humanity itself. Welcome to Crush.ā
The website says Crush will be open Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 4 p.m. to 12 a.m., Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m., Fridays from 4 p.m. to 3 a.m., Saturdays from 2 p.m. to 3 a.m., and Sundays from 2 p.m. to 12 a.m. It will be closed on Mondays.
Crush is located less than two blocks from the U Street Metro station.
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