17-Year-Old Charged With Assaulting Gay Utah Teen
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A 17-year-old has been charged in the assault of a gay teenager in Sandy Utah last month and may be additionally charged with federal hate crimes.
Police say a 19-year-old friend of that suspect now also faces charges, after he went back and allegedly vandalized the victim’s home in retaliation for his friend’s arrest.
Both accused teens have hate crime enhancements added to their court charges.
The 17-year-old was charged in juvenile court with assault, a third-degree felony; and initiating a riot, a second-degree felony.
Hayden Perry Stowell, 19, has been charged in 3rd District Court with retaliation against a witness, a third-degree felony; and criminal mischief, a class A misdemeanor.
On July 30, two Sandy teenagers, Christian Peacock and Jacob Metcalf, were hugging outside Peacock’s Sandy home when a car drove by and the occupants yelled homophobic slurs at them, according to police. The car returned about 45 minutes later, when several occupants got out and yelled, “We don’t like f—–s” at the gay couple.
The 17-year-old allegedly taunted Peacock and Metcalf and eventually hit Peacock in the head, sending him to the hospital, where he was treated for a concussion and brain swelling. They both later talked about the experience to The Salt Lake Tribune.
Metcalf recounted: “There were five people there against just me and my boyfriend.”
The charging documents for the 17-year-old say he told police he approached the couple and “clearly targeted” them due to their sexual orientation.
He allegedly also told officers that he didn’t like that Peacock and Metcalf were displaying physical affection openly in their driveway. The 17-year-old refused to identify anyone who was in the car with him at the time of the attack, the charges state.
The Peacock family released a statement Tuesday through their attorneys.
It said: “There can be no place in Utah for hate crimes. We appreciate the swift and continuing efforts of the Sandy Police Department, Sim Gill, and the District Attorney’s Office to investigate and prosecute the hate crimes that targeted our family. We also thank our friends and neighbors in Sandy, including Mayor Monica Zoltanski, for standing by us and making clear that hate crimes will not be tolerated in Sandy.”
