Bringing the region’s annual body count to 285, Friday’s “crime of passion” murder of 28-year-old Aaron Scheerhorn outside Houston gay bar Club Blur was not a hate crime, police say. They’re still searching for his killer, who fled on foot from the “brutal” stabbing attack that went down in front of numerous witnesses.
nightmares
Aaron Scheerhoorn’s Gruesome Stabbing Murder Outside Houston Gay Bar Not Considered A Hate Crime
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ForeverGay
I am not surprised that a gay man can be killed in front of many witnesses and no one helps then not provide enough information to the police. Earlier this year a gay man was killed at a party in front of the entire haterosexual crowd and they blamed him for it. Said he flirted with the killers. Haterosexuals always fall back on sex to explain their anti-gay actions when it has to do with their boiling hatred for anything non-haterosexual.
Merlyn
@Forevergay–agreed. I am not surprised that this young man’s death is not considered a hate crime. Not with all the antigay hatred being spewed out there.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
Interesting new twist, possibly anti-Gay rage is now classified as “passion”………………….
What a shame seems like he was a nice guy as well as adorable……….
chris
I live 2 blocks away from where this occurred. If you take the time to read the attached article, you will read that the two arrived there together AT A GAY BAR, in a neighborhood of nothing BUT gay bars. My assumption would be that this was a lover’s quarrel or something of the sort, not hate crime. People dont really come around looking for trouble in our gayborhood, Houston is just not like that. My heart goes out to the victim and his family of friends, may this guy find it in himself to turn himself in.
SteveAtlanta
I sincerely hope the investigation will bring justice in this tragic case, but if signs to show the killer was indeed a hetrosexual who had no business being there, than I also hope there will be a grassroots campaign in Houston by LGBT to stand up and get loud and let your voices be heard that you will not stand for that. That we are not as weak as people may assume, and are actually quite strong in numbers when united.
Tanya
Note to Chris: The two did NOT arrive together at the bar. Aaron was confronted and stabbed in the street. He then ran to the door of the bar for help. The guy chased him there and then stabbed him to death. It was NOT a lover’s quarrel. Aaron was in a committed relationship and it was NOT with a 250-pound black man!! If anyone has any information that will help the police solve this, PLEASE come forward. His family and friends really want to see this guy caught and punished for what he has done.
chris
@Tanya: Noted. The Chron made it sound like it could go either way. Didn’t make the assumption that he wouldn’t be involved with a guy because he was black. White, Black, or Blue, I hope they find him and string him up.
SteveAtlanta
If what Tanya is saying is true, and some 250 pound black man approached the kid and stabbe dhim to death…..HOUSTON GAY COMMUNITY RISE UP! Get out, protest, put pressure on the police force and investigators, do an equality march in the streets. I lived in Los Angeles around 10 years ago, and in West Hollywood (the gay area of the city) there was one night where a group of 5 large black men ventured out into West Hollywood and started stalking gay men leaving bars. They then beat a couple with bats, leaving one needing brain surgery, another in a coma for a month. Their motive was simple, they were bored and wanted to bash some gays. One even said they were looking to kill a gay that night. I’ll never forget how quickly the gay community rose up and united in the face of that hate. There was a march, a public open meeting at city council, after many emails and phone calls the news was reporting it roun the clock. They finally caught the perpatrators and same needs to be done in Houston. If you’re in Houston and associated to this story, start a grassroots movement and campaign and join forces with local LGBT orginizations and chapters and get the troops going. Don’t let this be a story burried in the paper next to the cat who got caught in a tree.
And I’m damn disappointed other gays would stand by and let that sh8t go down with out taking pictures, video, doing SOMETHING. I can only hope the gay community in the area now unites as one loud force and demands answers and exposure to this story. If he was randomly trageted for his sexuality, which all the articles point to, just think, it could have been YOU that was stabbed by this monster. That should be enough to get you out there on the streets.
KraftMachine
@Tanya: Tanya, I agree with the poster above. Get in touch with GLBT Houston community center, start a facebook group, and organize a march. Try to get as many people in the area to come, from local business owners, to straight allies, and as many bodies as possible. The reason marches after hate crimes, especially those occuring in the heart of the gayberhood, are effective is because it will force various news networks to cover the story more, shed more light on it and keep it in the limelight, which results in more leads and tips. You always want to keep the attention on the story to send a loud message to future killers that this incidents will not be taken lightly. send that message by keeping the ball rolling on this. If I were in Houston, I’d help you start that street march because they usually draw lot’s of activists and concerned citizens and are so very effective.
Tanya
What also bothers me is that with so many witnesses giving descriptions, why haven’t the police plastered the media with a composite sketch? Somebody is bound to recognize this guy if they’ll give the public something to go on.
SteveAtlanta
@Tanya: Again, what are you all planning to do? get the gay community involved in this and make it about what it is…a hate crime targeted at a random gay man in a gay oriented section of the city. Get gays involved, organize and rally the troops and stand up and speak up about it. From what I know, Houston has a heavily populated gay community, you can touch base with all the gay blogs (Queerty, towleroad, afterelton) and let them know of the date/time/setting of the march, and after you get clearance from the city to march (easy to do) pass out fliers, posters, inform the news outlets and people will show up in loads and the police will have no reason but to do something and do it in a timely manner. Until then, if we adopt a sluggish mentality of waiting on them, not much stride will be made. Keep us updated please.
Oh boy
A damn senseless shame. Beautiful guy too.
Sid
I once saw a guy right in front of Blur get bit in the face and bleed all over the sidewalk. Both the attacker and the victim were almost certainly gay and not engaged in a hate crime. Blur is a bar/club, and drunken bar violence happens. A stabbing murder is totally unacceptable of course, but not having been there, I can’t automatically assume it was a hate crime. (And @SteveAtlanta: As for the attacker being a 225-pound “clean-cut” “tall black man between the ages of 25 and 30″—those features don’t designate a scary outsider; he’d fit right in with half the other people in line.)
AugustLA
@Sid: Well, for someone who doesn’t know the facts, you sure don’t mind drawing conclusions in haste. If you read various articles from the tragic story you’ll see that the attacker did seem to be out of place and came out of nowhere, so that debunks your attempt to brush off a potential hate crime for what it potentially could be.
Gay men who insist on getting in bed with haters make me sick!
Steevo
This was not a “crime of passion” as the police speculate. I was Aarons room mate recently and I know him for a few years and have know his partner for over 20 years. I am angry that the police are so quick to make up some story like this. Aaron was out for the night and his boyfriend was at home. This person who fled on foot so far is nor a preson we know, or Aarons friends knew of in the friend “cirlce”.
Steevo
LOL. Sorry about the spelling. I just did not proof read…..I actually did go to school.
Steevo
@Tanya: Arrons BF and I were together back in the 90’s for 5 years. So I know him well. I just moved back to Houston from out of state and stayed with them for about 4 months. I have known Aaron for a few years as well. I am so angry that the Houston Chronicle has published this bull shit story about it being a crime of passion. I hope you are as angry as I am and will keep on setting people straight over this like I am. It almost sounds like the HPD want to just brush this off as something it is not to avoid haveing to work to find the killer and motive.
Steevo
Candle Light vigil tonight for Aaron starting at Taft and Fairview proceeding to BLUR
Steevo
Candle Light vigil tonight at 9pm. Starting at Taft and Fairview proceeding to BLUR
Kev C
Crimes that are up close and excessively violent like this are sometimes called “crimes of passion”, between two people who know each other personally. But they can be indistinguishable from crimes of hate, where the person passionately hates a stranger in an excessive and personal way, as many gay bashings are.
The fact that the killer may have been gay too, a clean cut black man wearing dress shoes and a fitted sweater. Besides Velma from Scooby Doo, who wears orange turtlenecks?
A tragic loss, RIP Aaron.
Tanya
@Steevo: Thanks. I’ve known Aaron’s BF for over 20 years and the Chronicle story also irritated me to the point that I had to comment. I couldn’t let people keep thinking that this was a crime of passion. It was murder and the guy needs to be caught and punished!
Nancy
Aaron was an amazing man and a brilliant friend…I had the pleasure of dating Aaron in the past as well as holding him as one of my dearest friends…he will be missed intensely and celebrated daily…2nd candlelight vigil 12/17/2010,
9:00pm, Taft and Fairview…It will be a beautiful event…much like Aaron…:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=588010&id=725100713&l=e3aa0ac794
Sincerest love and regards…Nan
AdonisOfFire
I’m so sorry for this horrible crime, I live in Houston and I haven’t gone to bars in several years since I started college, but I know it’s not really safe…there’s minimum security if at all in many of the bars.
Mike in Asheville
RIP Aaron; my sad thoughts for the BF. I can’t and don’t want to imagine such a horrible event happening to me/my hubby of 25 years.
*******************
My question to those friends of Arron and others from Houston (please let this be the extremely lame report from the Houston Chronicle): the report implies that the security staff and several patrons of Blur witnessed the attack right in front of them, AND NO ONE STOOD UP TO HELP DEFEND AARON? If, and I understand this is not certain but only what is in the news report, IF that is the case, why isn’t the anger also pointed at Blur? A gay club in a gay neighborhood, with security and gay patrons? It would seem that a boycott until its forced to close of Blur would be in order. To me, this is certainly a case of “if you aren’t FOR us; you’re against us.”
This is a shame
I knew Aaron when he was sober, and boy was he a geat guy. Super sweet and had a beautiful light in his eyes. Though he was a great guy, he had a serious problem with drugs and alcohol. Garrett (Bamm) just got stabbed in that area a few months ago, so this is nothing new and no surprise. The streets of Montrose have become absolutely drug infested and a high crime area due to all the tweekers and crack addicts roaming around. The gay community needs to stand up and take back that area. Take back Montrose from the drug infested low lifes that roam the street selling crack and meth. Don’t let Aaron’s death be in vain.
matthew
what a sad, sketchy story. NIGHTMARE is right!
Stephen
@Nancy: Hope to make it Friday night.
Jeremy
It is a hate crime when those who witnessed it decided not to protect the innocent. Shame on those..
jack
When the investigation seems to be stalled, take it to the next level. People need to know without a doubt that justice is necessary.