Koz he’s hot and saxy
Family Portrait: Zane Booker
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New board members for Equality Pennsylvania
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Philadelphia Gay News
Feb. 11-17, 2011
Honesty Integrity Professionalism
Vol. 35 No. 6
Trans sex worker to face murder trial Herman “Peaches” Burton claims to have had a months-long sexual relationship with Patrick Michael Brady, who was killed at the Omni Hotel in October. Burton faces charges of murder, theft, arson and abuse of corpse. A date for the trial has not yet been set. By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com New details emerged this week in the case of a transgender prostitute accused of murdering a man at a local hotel this past fall. A preliminary hearing was held before Judge Joseph Waters Feb. 8 in the case of Herman “Peaches” Burton, accused of the Oct. 30 killing of Patrick Michael Brady. Waters ordered Burton to stand trial for the murder, but the proceeding has not yet been scheduled. Burton, who has a long rap sheet encompassing 36 arrests in the past few years, now faces charges of murder, theft, arson, abuse of corpse and related charges. Rescue personnel found Brady’s body Oct. 31 in the Omni Hotel, Fourth and Chestnut streets, after a BURTON report of a small fire in an eighth-floor room. During this week’s hearing, prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed that the medical examiner would not testify during the trial, nor would Burton’s statement to the police be read because of the graphic and gruesome nature of the account. The ME determined the cause of death PAGE 5 to be strangulation and
Groundbreaking trans study reveals impact of rampant bias By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com The first comprehensive national study on transgender discrimination found widespread financial, social and emotional devastation from the pervasive harassment transgender Americans face. The National Transgender Discrimination Survey included input from 6,450 transgender and gender nonconforming people from all 50 states who represented a wealth of ages, races and backgrounds. “Injustice at Every Turn,” an initiative that began in 2008, PAGE 6
SUPER SUNDAY: Members and supporters of the Greater Philadelphia Flag Football League watched the big game on the big screen at International House of Philadelphia last weekend while raising funds for ActionAIDS. Whether rooting for the Packers or the Steelers, the more-than 100 partygoers came together to bring in about $2,500 for the HIV/AIDS service organization. GPFFL commissioner Wayne Knaub said the event was a success in its first year, and organizers are hoping to make the party an annual fundraiser for ActionAIDS. The predominantly gay football association will begin its spring league on March 19. Photo: Scott A. Drake
Appeal denied for officer who sided with antigay protestors By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit last week affirmed a lower court ruling that found the constitutional rights of a Kutztown University police officer, who was disciplined after refusing to remove an antigay group from campus, were not violated. The court, in an opinion filed Feb. 4 by District Judge Richard Stearns, upheld the dismissal of Cpl. Steven Armbruster’s suit by District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones II
last year. Armbruster contended that his constitutional right to free speech and his right to refuse to violate others’ free-speech rights were violated when he was disciplined by his superior for disobeying an order to remove 15 members of Repent America from the campus. Last year, Jones found that Armbruster had spoken in his official capacity as a police officer, not as a citizen, nullifying his free-speech claim, and that no one has the constitutional right to refuse to violate others’ free-speech rights.
The group, which frequently protests local LGBT community events, was met with a crowd of students and staff during its April 2007 visit to the college. According to Armbruster’s complaint, chief of police William Mioskie told the protestors to leave, as the crowd of 300 counter-demonstrators was becoming increasingly agitated by their rhetoric, and instructed Armbruster to enforce that order. Armbruster refused Mioskie’s instruction, as well as a request to remove the protesters by Kutztown president F. Javier Cevallos. The officer PAGE 4
Couple faces Valentine deportation By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com As couples in the area rush to buy last-minute gifts for their sweethearts, two local men are feverishly working to ensure they can even spend Valentine’s Day in the same country. Anton Tanumihardja, TANUMIHARDJA a native of Indonesia, (LEFT) AND is facing a deportation ANDERSEN deadline of Feb. 14, a move that would tear him away — possibly permanently — from partner Brian Andersen, a Philadelphia resident. Tanumihardja has filed numerous applications for political asylum — based on the fact that he is gay, ethnic Chinese and Catholic, all identities that could lead to persecution in his home country — but the Board of Immigration PAGE 5