Vandalism of Oregon Restaurant May Be Hate Crime

A lesbian restaurant owner from Milwaukie, Ore., says recent acts of vandalism on her establishment may be the result of antigay bias.

The Oregonian reports that two concrete blocks were thrown through the windows of DaVinci's Ristorante Italiano and the building's power was cut sometime late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

Deputy Marcus Mendoza of the Clackamas County Sheriff's office said the events occurred after a confrontation between the restaurant's owner, Heather Molatore, and a potential customer.

According to Molatore, a man who had been waiting five minutes for a table stormed out after reading an article posted on the wall about Molatore and her partner, Felicia. As he left, the man reportedly said, "You girls have fun with your little restaurant" and slammed the front door so hard that a picture fell from the wall.

Molatore, who was informed the next morning while attending church that the restaurant had been vandalized, suspects the two incidents might be related.

"We have a lot of support from our church, our friends and family," she said. "It's really good to know so many people care about us and that there was just one jerk who had to do something."

The man is described as being in his mid-50s, between 5-foot-10 and 5-foot-11, about 170 pounds, with gray hair, balding in front.

Read the full story here.