More than 1,500 New Yorkers gathered today in Manhattan to mourn the death of a 32 year-old gay man, who was shot down on Friday just blocks away from the historic Stonewall Inn in an apparent act of anti-gay bias.
UPDATE: Suspect Charged in Jorge Steven López Case – No Hate Crime Charge at this Time
Thursday, November 19, 2009 - 1:02pm by Seth Adam, GLAAD's Senior Manager of Communications
Juan Martínez Matos – the man who has confessed to brutally murdering, decapitating and dismembering 19 year-old Jorge Steven López – was charged with murder in the first degree and a series of weapons charges on Wednesday, according to Puerto Rico’s Primera Hora newspaper.
A hate crime charge has yet to be filed and Martínez Matos is being held on $4 million bail.
The victim’s grief-stricken father appeared in court for the hearing and was asked for forgiveness by his son’s killer.
“I have already forgiven you, but the one you must ask for forgiveness is God," said López senior.
The preliminary hearing in the case was scheduled for 7 December in a Caguas, PR court.
Updates on this story will continue to be posted on GLAADblog.org