A rally for justice in alleged hate crime

Michael Sandy died five days after he was beaten, then hit by a car

(Brooklyn - WABC, October 16, 2006) - There is no word yet on whether murder charges will be filed against three men for the death of a gay black man in Brooklyn last week.

Michael Sandy died on Friday, five days after he was beaten and then hit by a car as he ran away from the men who attacked him -- men, police say, he met on a gay Internet chat room.

The three suspects, we're told, will more than likely be facing murder charges in the very near future.

Meanwhile, leaders in the black gay community are condemning the tragic death of Michael Sandy, the victim of what some here say is a hate crime.

Leticia James, NYC Councilwoman: "Michael was attacked and killed because he was young and gifted, gay and black. He was intentionally lured to a site and savagely beaten."

Police are investigating Sandy's death as a possible bias crime, classifying it as anti-gay. And with the three suspects allegedly contacting Michael Sandy online, there is growing concern this too is cyber stalking.

Mike Osgood, Deputy Inspector with NYPD: "This is the first use of the World Wide Web to lure somebody ... it's definitely the first ... in the city of New York."

Sandy, investigators reveal, was lured into a sexual encounter at Plum Beach where he was savagely beaten, allegedly by three men from Sheepshead Bay. Sandy, trying to escape, ran onto the Belt Parkway where he was struck by a car.

He died a day after his 29th birthday after his family took him off life support.

"According to one witness, Sandy looked so scared that he bolted into the third lane of traffic ... where he was struck by a vehicle," Osgood said.

Nineteen-year-old John Fox along with 16-year-old Gary Timmmins and 20-year old Ilya Shurov were first arrested and charged with assault and robbery during a hate crime. Phillip Smallman is the attorney for John Fox.

"He's told me he wasn't involved in violence regarding the man who was there. He was very clear about that, " Smallman said.