Washington DC Blade
06/18/02
Gay man killed in attack outside Calif. gay bar
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- The fatal stabbing of a gay man is being investigated as a hate crime after he and another victim were attacked outside a gay bar, according to the Riverside Press-Enterprise. Jeffery Owens, 40, a gay activist, died June 6 after he was stabbed in the parking lot of the Menagerie. Four to six men attacked Owens and Michael Bussee, 48, about midnight behind the downtown bar, police said. Bussee survived the attack with one stab wound, and Owens suffered at least four stab wounds. No other motive than anti-gay bias is apparent, police said. Deputy District Attorney John Davis, who prosecutes bias crimes, said it is too early in the investigation to say whether the case will be filed as a hate crime. But Owens' partner, Jeff Holland, who witnesses the attack, said he heard anti-gay epithets. "They specifically said, 'You want some trouble… fag, here it is.'"
