Matthew Shepard Case Study
Hate Crimes: Matthew Sheppard On 6 October 1998, Matthew Shepard, a student at the University of Wyoming, met Aaron James McKinney and Russel Arthur Henderson in a bar. The two men, claiming to also be gay, offered to drive Matthew home, but instead brought him to an isolated area, where they took his wallet (containing $20 and a credit card) and his leather shoes. But that was not the end. McKinney and Henderson tied Shepard to a fence, and proceeded to beat him to the point of unconsciousness. He was found 18 hours later, his unconscious body initially mistaken for a fallen scarecrow. The police officer who responded to the 911 call testified, “Though his face was caked in blood, his face was clean where streaks of tears had washed the
…show more content…
The Matthew Shepard case displays all five of the characteristics :
1. “Victims of hate crimes tend to be attacked by people they do not know (unlike other violent crimes where victims are often attacked by people they know - spouses, parents, friends, neighbours).”
Matthew Shepard did not know his attackers personally, they were just two men he met in a bar.
2. “Hate crimes are more likely than other crimes to be intensely personal and excessively …show more content…
At first the defendants pleaded guilty to robbery, because they said that they had not intended to kill Shepard, they had only beat him to ensure that he wouldn 't go to the police. They claimed the aggravated assault was also the result of abuse of alcohol. McKinney also claimed that Shepard had made unwanted sexual advances which had sent him into a rage, that was caused by negative childhood experiences with homosexuality. All of these claims make sense, however, it was well-known that McKinney did not like homosexuals. Given that Shepard had virtually no money with him, plus the fact that he was gay, made it hard to argue that Matthew Shepard 's attack was accidental. At the time of the trial, the criminal statute of the state of Wyoming provided no charge for hate crimes. However, soon after, a bill was introduced defining charges for hate crimes. Now, the Matthew Shepard case is considered a hate crime against
The Matthew Shepard case displays all five of the characteristics :
1. “Victims of hate crimes tend to be attacked by people they do not know (unlike other violent crimes where victims are often attacked by people they know - spouses, parents, friends, neighbours).”
Matthew Shepard did not know his attackers personally, they were just two men he met in a bar.
2. “Hate crimes are more likely than other crimes to be intensely personal and excessively …show more content…
At first the defendants pleaded guilty to robbery, because they said that they had not intended to kill Shepard, they had only beat him to ensure that he wouldn 't go to the police. They claimed the aggravated assault was also the result of abuse of alcohol. McKinney also claimed that Shepard had made unwanted sexual advances which had sent him into a rage, that was caused by negative childhood experiences with homosexuality. All of these claims make sense, however, it was well-known that McKinney did not like homosexuals. Given that Shepard had virtually no money with him, plus the fact that he was gay, made it hard to argue that Matthew Shepard 's attack was accidental. At the time of the trial, the criminal statute of the state of Wyoming provided no charge for hate crimes. However, soon after, a bill was introduced defining charges for hate crimes. Now, the Matthew Shepard case is considered a hate crime against