ADL Condemns Beating of Ecuadorean Man In Brazen Attack In Brooklyn
Update: August 6, 2010: Keith Phoenix was sentenced to 25 years to life for second-degree murder and an additional 12 years for attempted assault, both as hate crimes. Hakim Scott was sentenced to 37 years.
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Update: June 29, 2010: Keith Phoenix, one of two men accused in the attack on Jose Sucuzhañay, was convicted of murder as a hate crime and faces up to life in prison. The second defendant, Hakim Scott, was previously convicted of manslaughter and assault, but acquitted of hate crime charges. He faces up to 25 years.
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New York, NY, December 9, 2008 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today strongly denounced the brutal beating of an Ecuadorean man who was attacked while walking home with his brother in Brooklyn. The assailants reportedly shouted anti-gay and anti-Latino slurs as they attacked the two men with a broken glass bottle and an aluminum bat.
Joel J. Levy, ADL New York Regional Director, issued the following statement:
The attack against Jose and Romel Sucuzhañay is another disturbing example of the deadly power of blind hatred. The attackers reportedly shouted hateful epithets as they unleashed a fatal assault against an innocent man. This kind of senseless targeting has no place in any community, and must be condemned in the strongest terms if it is to be countered effectively.
We applaud the New York City Police Department and its Hate Crimes Task Force for the speed and seriousness with which they have responded to this incident, and look forward to seeing the assailants caught and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
The attack occurred over the weekend, as the two brothers were walking home in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The victim, Jose Sucuzhañay, suffered skull fractures and brain damage before succumbing to his injuries. His brother, Romel Sucuzhañay, was not seriously injured.
The League has long been at the forefront of national and state efforts to deter and counteract hate crimes.
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The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.
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