Gay former Fayette commissioner bludgeoned to death
Victim may have had ‘relations’ with accused killer
By DYANA BAGBY


Thomas Richey, the man suspected of killing a former Fayette County commissioner by bludgeoning him to death with a concrete block during a likely sexual encounter, remained on the lam as of Sept. 15, law enforcement officials said.

Charles Mask, 74, a Fayette County commissioner from 1986-1988, was found Sept. 19 in a Winnebago motor home parked behind his residence. Mask, who was known to be gay, had been struck in the head with a concrete block, said Lt. Col. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department.



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Cincinnati's gay rights law ban up for vote
1993 AMENDMENT BARS LAWS BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION
By John Nolan
ASSOCIATED PRESS


CINCINNATI - Voters in this historically conservative city will decide in November whether to toss out a one-of-a-kind ban on gay rights laws.

Gay activists backed by church leaders and the city's largest corporations are supporting a proposed repeal of the ban, which voters approved in 1993. They are lined up against a Baptist preacher who has served as a spokesman in support of the ban and activists from Citizens for Community Values, a group that has fought against pornography and stores or hotels that make sexually explicit videos available.

The city charter amendment approved by 62 percent of voters forbids Cincinnati to enact or enforce laws based on sexual orientation. Cincinnati is the only city in the nation with such a provision in its charter, which, like a constitution, is the legal framework the city works from to enact laws.

The ban stunned gay activists, some of whom have vowed since its approval to try to get it repealed. But the Nov. 2 election is the first time voters will be asked to reconsider the ban.


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Law students host anti-Army protest today
By alex dubilet


At noon today, members of Lambda Law and its supporters across the University plan to gather in protest of on-campus recruiting by the U.S. military. Protesters argue that the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy is discriminatory.

In conjunction with the lawsuit against the Department of Defense filed last year, the protest organized by Lambda Law -- a Penn Law School student group that advocates for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues -- is designed to give voice to the University community's frustrations over sexual preference discrimination, which activists argue is in violation of Penn Law's non-discrimination policy.


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Man Who Dumps Manure Avoids Jail Time


Conway - A Greenbrier farmer who dumped manure along a gay rights parade route in Conway will avoid jail time, but, 35-year-old Wesley Bono was ordered to pay $369 in restitution and $500 in court costs.

Bono was sentenced to 30 days in jail.  The judge suspended that sentence as long as he makes his payments on time.

The cattle farmer says he was expressing his right to protest when he dumped 6,000 pounds of manure along the gay pride parade in July.



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GLBTSS vandalized
By Adrienne Hoenig



Eight letters were stolen from the sign outside Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Student Services Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

The GLBTSS office, located on the main level of the Lory Student Center, is now missing the first letter of each word, along with the first three letters of "services," transforming it into the word "vices." The student center opens at 6 a.m. and the letters were noticed missing at about 7:30 a.m.

"We're calling it a theft right now," said Capt. Bob Chaffee of the CSU Police Department. "We'll obviously look at it as a hate crime."