Metro Weekly

Two marines beat Savannah gay man unconscious over alleged “wink”

”The guy thought I was winking at him. I told him, ‘I was squinting, man. … I’m tired…. That’s the last thing I remember is walking away…. It leaves me wondering why Georgia is one of five states that doesn’t have a hate crime law on the state level.”

Kieran Daly, 26, a gay man in Savannah, Georgia, who was hit from behind by Marines who accused him of winking at them. According to Savannah Now, Joseph Cronauer, 22, and Christopher Charles Stanzel, 23, were arrested as they ran from the scene. It’s reported that the pair alleged that they were “being harassed by a gay man,” and Daly says one of the marines demanded respect because he served in Iraq. Daly’s friends had to perform CPR on him till help arrived and he was left with a bruised brain that caused seizures. (Savannah Now)


”The community is definitely pulling together…. We’re up in arms and very, very, very upset that we aren’t allowed to be ourselves on the street.”

Jesse Morgan, president of the Gay-Straight Alliance at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, which is pulling together a protest rally. There has been a strong reaction to the incident that allegedly occurred between two US Marines and a gay man, who was knocked unconscious and required CPR to resucitate him. It’s not entirely clear which of the soldiers hit Kieran Daly, and the Morning Call reports that the Daly his friend, the two Marines had been sharing pizza with two other people, when one of the Marines, Joseph Cronauer, relaized Daly was gay, then accused him of winking. (The Morning Call)

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