A man who tried
to fend off gay-bashing charges by telling a jury that he
is also gay was convicted of manslaughter as a hate crime
Thursday in an attack at a remote New York
City beach. Jurors deliberated several days
before convicting Anthony Fortunato in the death of Michael
Sandy, who was beaten and then chased into the path of
a moving car on October 8, 2006.
The jury
acquitted Fortunato of murder, which could have put him
behind bars for life. He faces five to 25 years in
prison instead.
Prosecutors said
Fortunato and three other young men hatched a
hate-inspired robbery scheme after they ran out of drugs and
money on a weekend night. The group needed an easy
victim, and Fortunato suggested they look for one in
an Internet chat room frequented by gay men looking
for sex partners, authorities alleged.
They logged on
and found Sandy, lured him out to Brooklyn's Plum Beach
with a promise of a date, and attacked him, prosecutors told
jurors.
Fortunato
testified that he had a role in the crime but said hate had
nothing to do with it. The 21-year-old said he was also gay,
or at least bisexual. Jurors also heard testimony from
three men who told of one-night stands with Fortunato.
Prosecutors
argued that under state hate-crimes law, they didn't have to
prove that Sandy's attackers hated gay men, only that they
picked their victim because of his sexual orientation.
Fortunato
acknowledged that it was his idea to find a gay man to scam
out of drugs or money, but he insisted he never meant
for anyone to get hurt. The plan, he told the jury,
was to get Sandy to share some marijuana voluntarily,
or take money from him and run. Other members of the group
attacked Sandy without warning, he said.
Fortunato's
attorney, Gerald J. DiChiara, did not immediately respond to
a phone message seeking comment Thursday.
A second man
charged in the attack, John Fox, was convicted of
manslaughter and hate-crime charges last week by a separate
jury. Another attacker, Gary Timmins, pleaded guilty
to attempted robbery and testified for prosecutors. A
fourth suspect, Ilye Shurov, is awaiting trial. (David
B. Caruso, AP)