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The
gay
rights
group
Equality
Florida
is
planning
to
hold
vigils
throughout
the
state
and
in
Washington,
D.C.
on
April
14
to
draw
attention
to
the
vicious
murder
of
Ryan
Keith
Skipper.
Skipper,
a
25-year-old
Polk
County,
Fla.,
man,
was
stabbed
20
times
and
left
on
the
side
of
a
road
in
Wahneta,
Fla.,
on
March
14.
The
Polk
County
Sheriff’s
Office
has
classified
Skipper’s
murder
as
an
anti-gay
hate
crime.
A
vigil
in
honor
of
Skipper
will
be
held
April
14
at
1
p.m.
at
the
Gay
&
Lesbian
Community
Center
of
South
Florida
in
Fort
Lauderdale.
Equality
Florida
has
also
scheduled
a
vigil
at
the
Town
Hall
in
downtown
Lake
Worth
on
the
same
day.
Two
suspects,
William
David
Brown
Jr.,
20,
and
Joseph
Bearden,
21,
have
been
indicted
on
first-degree
murder
and
robbery
charges
in
Skipper’s
killing.
According
to
a
police
statement,
the
murder
occurred
after
Skipper
gave
a
ride
to
Bearden
as
he
was
walking
along
the
road.
But
the
events
that
led
to
the
murder
remain
in
doubt.
Police
say
they
are
still
investigating
the
crime
and
have
conceded
that
they
relied
on
statements
provided
by
the
suspects
in
issuing
their
initial
statements
about
the
killing.
According
to
police,
a
witness
told
investigators
that
Brown
killed
Skipper
because
he
was
homosexual.
The
witness
said
Brown
had
claimed
that
Skipper
“was
messing
with
me,”
according
to
a
statement
from
the
Polk
County
Sheriff’s
Office.
According
to
police,
witnesses
have
also
said
that
the
two
suspects
drove
around
town
in
Skipper’s
bloody
car
bragging
about
the
killing.
The
car
was
a
brand-new
2007
Chevrolet
Aveo,
police
said.
Skipper’s
friends
and
relatives
have
criticized
initial
reports
about
the
killing,
which
appeared
to
blame
the
victim.
In
an
article
in
the
Lakeland
Ledger,
Polk
County
Sheriff
Grady
Judd
was
quoted
as
saying,
“What
we
do
know
is
that
Ryan
was
looking
for
someone
to
pick
up
that
evening.
And
unfortunately
for
Ryan,
he
picked
up
the
wrong
person.”
Friends
of
Skipper
have
said
they
did
not
believe
he
was
looking
to
hook
up
with
anyone
that
evening.
Police
officials
have
since
confirmed
that
the
sheriff
was
only
giving
the
suspects’
account
of
events
and
that
there
was
no
evidence
that
Skipper
was
looking
to
pick
up
anyone
on
the
night
of
the
murder.
The
initial
police
statement
on
the
killing
also
refers
to
Skipper
and
one
of
the
suspects,
Joseph
Bearden,
going
to
Skipper’s
house
to
pick
up
a
computer.
“The
computer
was
to
be
used
to
copy
checks,”
the
statement
said.
A
friend
of
Skipper’s,
Karl
von
Hahmann,
said
Skipper
had
a
personal
computer
but
no
printer
or
scanner.
In
some
media
accounts,
it
sounded
as
if
Skipper
was
involved
in
check
forgery
with
Brown
and
Bearden.
But
police
have
since
clarified
the
statement,
pointing
out
that
they
were
just
recounting
what
the
suspects
had
told
them.
They
have
not
found
any
evidence
that
Skipper
was
involved
in
any
kind
of
check
forging
scheme
with
the
two
suspects.
“There
is
no
indication
that
Ryan
Skipper
was
involved
in
any
illegal
activity,”
said
Donna
Wood,
public
information
officer
for
the
Polk
County
Sheriff’s
Office.
Wood
also
said
that
the
two
suspects
“gave
conflicting
stories
about
time
and
events.”
Brian
Winfield,
communications
director
for
Equality
Florida,
said
he
thought
the
initial
reports
about
the
murder
may
have
depressed
the
media
coverage.
“While
we
appreciate
that
police
have
classified
this
as
a
hate
crime
and
have
vigorously
investigated
it,
I
believe
that
the
lack
of
media
interest
in
this
story
could
have
something
to
do
with
initial
reports
failing
to
accurately
portray
Ryan
Skipper’s
good
character
and
his
standing
in
the
community,”
Winfield
said.
“The
sheriff’s
department
relied
solely
on
the
statements
of
the
suspects
and
reported
those
statements
as
if
they
were
fact
in
a
way
that
greatly
offended
Ryan’s
family
and
friends.”
Winfield
said
the
murder
has
received
little
or
no
coverage
in
the
state’s
major
daily
papers
despite
the
fact
that
Equality
Florida
has
sent
out
press
releases
about
it.
He
noted
that
the
Tampa
Tribune
ran
only
a
short
blurb
and
an
item
on
a
police
blotter
page.
As
of
press
time,
Google
searches
on
the
other
major
dailies
turned
up
nothing
on
the
case.
Besides
the
gay
press,
it
appears
that
the
only
publications
that
have
covered
the
murder
in
any
depth
are
the
Lakeland
Ledger
and
the
Pensito
Review,
a
news
website
that
focuses
on
politics
and
media
coverage.
In
its
detailed
report,
...
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