NYC Man Sentenced To 18 Years for Anti-Gay Hate Attack During COVID
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39 year-old Kevin Carroll was sentenced to 18 years to life for his July 2020 assault and robbery of a doctor on the Long Island Rail Road. Carroll had been yelling homophobic slurs at the man preceding the attack resulting in a charge of robbery and aggravated harassment as a hate crime.
At the station, just a few months into the COVID-19 pandemic’s grip on the city, Carroll approached his victim around 7:20 p.m. asking for a dollar. When he wasn’t given a dollar, Carroll threw a water bottle at the man and then walked away, Katz said.
But that was not the end of their interaction. The district attorney said Carroll returned to the doctor and started yelling homophobic slurs before punching him in the face. The force of the attack knocked the victim to the ground where he lost consciousness.
Carroll took that opportunity to swipe the man’s cell phone and gym back before fleeing. Katz said cameras at the station captured Carroll’s actions. He was arrested two days later.
The man targeted by Carroll suffered permanent eye damage as a result of the assault, the DA said.
“Hate has no place in Queens. A jury weighed the evidence presented at trial and found the defendant guilty. Today, a judge ordered him to prison as punishment for his hateful actions,” Katz said.
Carroll’s criminal history, she added, includes an almost two-decades old conviction for body slamming an officer while he was panhandling in the subway.
