After Michael Gordon pleaded guilty to assaulting Erik Rozenski about six months ago near Richmond Row, Ontario Court Justice John Getliffe handed Gordon a suspended sentence with two years probation.
The court heard how after a night of drinking, Gordon and an unidentified man encountered Rozenski walking with his boyfriend, called them “faggots” and then punched and kicked Rozenski.
Meredith Fraser is one of the people who thinks that court decision was wrong.
….Fraser and her HBT colleagues are disappointed the court decision didn’t highlight the assault as a hate crime — even though one of the conditions attached to the sentence was that Gordon not associate with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) organizations.
Fraser also regrets the sentence didn’t include some form of restorative justice.
“This was a chance for the judge to call for Mr. Gordon to do some service work with LGBT members,” she says. “It was a chance to put a human face on this community.”
Your donation helps Prison Fellowship International repair the harm caused by crime by emphasizing accountability, forgiveness, and making amends for prisoners and those affected by their actions. When victims, offenders, and community members meet to decide how to do that, the results are transformational.
Donate Now