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Arrest Made In Alleged McDonald's Hate Crime Slashing
By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
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NYPD
By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
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44-year-old Keith Patron of the Bronx was arrested yesterday and charged with assault as a hate crime after he allegedly slashed a 24-year-old man with a razor last week in the troubled, violence-prone West Village McDonald's. The attack reportedly occurred after Patron realized his victim's date was transgendered.
Last Wednesday evening around 7 p.m. Patron allegedly became enraged when he saw 22-year-old Jalisa "JoJo" Griffen—who had just picked up her hormone medicine and was getting dinner before heading home to Bushwick—waiting on line to use the women's bathroom. "The guy started calling us faggots, saying he can’t stand gay people," Griffen recalled to the Daily News. "The insults were directed directly at me. My boyfriend said, 'This is my girl.'"
That only pushed Patron further, who then reportedly told the two, "You see, that’s how people get into trouble." The couple then left the restaurant but were followed by their taunter. Outside, Griffen took a swing at the suspect but missed, at which point her boyfriend, Jamar McLeod, stepped in:
He kneed the suspect in the groin and hit him in the face, police said. The burly man fell to the ground, climbed back on his feet and then pulled out a razor, using it to cut the victim’s face, neck, back and elbow, police said.
McLeod was later treated for his injuries. Sadly, this was by no means the first violent incident at this McDonald's. It has been in the headlines frequently over the past two years for a rowdy brawl, an employee-on-customer beating and an alleged gay-on-gay gay bashing.
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Garth Johnston
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