NJ.com reports:
A Hudson County jury has awarded a gay Union City couple US$3.15 million after the couple were chased and beaten following a dispute over their order at a Union City Burger King.
"Violence against anybody, including gay people, cannot be condoned. The jury spoke to this issue," Nutley attorney James F. Fine of the compensatory and punitive award awarded to Peter Casbar, 43, and Noel Robichaux, 46.
"Honestly, my clients were unable to speak. It was a very emotional moment for them," said Fine who handled the "gay bashing" suit with River Edge Attorney Joseph R. Donahue.
Casbar and Robichaux testified emotionally during the civil trial that began Feb. 7, saying the dispute with the person taking their order in the 2007 incident escalated and other Burger King workers became involved after they had already left the restaurant.
"The manager and a group of angry restaurant employees chased the couple and then mercilessly kicked, beat and spat upon the two men while screaming hate-filled anti-gay invectives," Fine said in a statement.
The couple alleged they were victims of a violent hate crime and brought the suit under New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination.
The jury rendered its verdict at 7 p.m. Wednesday and the award includes $1.7 in punitive damages. The $3.15 million must be paid by Food Service Properties Corp. and Union City Restaurant Corp. which own seven Burger Kings, including the one at 3501 Bergenline Ave. in Union City.
Printable Version
RSS Feed: 
Reader's Comments
(See additional facts in "Whopper of a hate crime" on Outinjersey.net),
Mind you , I experience it first hand in the course of my work as an order taker , not all PLU are nice and polite people to serve. Not sure if the couple has provoked the employee to want to retaliate and get even. Because sometimes PLU drives me up the wall that I feel like doing the same.
Whatever it is bashing and violence is not the answer. I feel sorry that this has happened.
They don't need to work for the rest of their lives
Very lucky guys, those two!
Can we stick to such principles and avoid over-generalizing ? i'm sure you will agree that there are "polite" and "impolite" people in every social group, simply because we (you, me) can be polite now and impolite the next minute. Polite to a person and impolite to another depending on a millions factors. Or polite according to us and impolite according to the other party... etc.
Generalizing is a common plague, and it is the "evil twin" of categorizing. We categorize because we try to make sense of the world around us. Often we "over categorize" and that's when we generalize. No one can resist it permanently but the problem is that it short-circuits the brain and somehow turns it into a machine. The result, more often than not, is the source of unfathomable evil and suffering in the history of humanity. Minorities are on the front line, as they are always the object of excessive generalization.
#3 I beg to differ, it is NOT like winning the lottery, because to win the lottery you need only buy a ticket. You need not be gang-bashed, insulted and spat upon by a group of hateful guys (whom you may or may not have "provoked" in the first place). The stigmata left by the bashing are impossible for us to evaluate unless we read the minutes of the trial. The notion of "damages" and "punitive damages" (not the same thing technically speaking) is a very interesting one, and there is no doubt that it has led to outrageous abuse. Inevitable I suppose. Read John Grisham on this, his books are full of fascinating insight on American Law and are very recreational at the same time.
Totally agree. Don't get me wrong , I totally agree and condone that violence is not the way to go.
But I tend to agree and have experienced that PLU tend to be more demanding and they tend to drive us ( more like me up the wall ). And mind you I get a good and fare share of rude and demanding people in my course of work. And I am not generalising , I know what I am talking about !! Never mind if you do not agree. Cheers ! Have a great week ahead.
Matahari _gar( Garduda )
" But I tend to agree and have experienced that PLU tend to be more demanding and they tend to drive us ( more like me up the wall ). "
Are you 69 years old? You sound like 16 years old. Be mature. Your above statememt is unacceptable. "PLU tend to be more demanding and drive...." Please speak to yourself, Do not include all gays. You seem very demanding n driving all PLU/gays crazy with your statement. Aren't you?
If you read his original comment (no.2), he originally said "not all PLU are nice and polite people to serve" which simple says he is taking into account that there ARE nice PLU also. But more to the point. this article doesn't give enough facts. How do we know the staff threw anti-gay expletives at the couple? Was there a 3rd party witness? How do we know the couple weren't assholes to begin with and provoked the staff?
I'm not condoning the act of violence. Any act of violence like that should be punishable. But assuming this is a hate crime based on limited facts from this dismal article is rather jumping the gun, don't you think? And even if it were, it doesn't give enough facts as to how the fight "escalated". If the gay couple was being difficult to the staff then i would say both parties have been justly punished for screwing each other over.
its not about money its only 3.15 million usd, its not much. its not like winning lottery. winning lottery you dont need to be beaten. how shallow you are.
Whether I am 16 or 69 makes no difference , age is only a number. What's important is the substance in your grey cells. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Please log in to use this feature.