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Court records show that hate crime charges have been dropped for most of the Salisbury University students, out of the 15 accused of assaulting someone based on their sexual orientation. However, they still have misdemeanor charges to face.
Written by Aimee Ortiz, Kate Christobek, and Sara Ruberg.
According to court records, prosecutors have decided to dismiss hate crime charges against 12 out of the 15 Salisbury University students accused by the police of luring someone to an off-campus apartment using a dating app and then physically assaulting and insulting him based on his sexual orientation.
Over the weekend, the Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s Office stated that they had examined the evidence collected during the investigation and filed charges based on that evidence.
After initially being arrested last month, the Salisbury Police Department charged 15 men with first-degree assault and hate crime charges. However, for 12 of the men, these charges no longer appear on Maryland’s court records. Instead, they now face misdemeanor charges of false imprisonment and second-degree assault according to court records.
Attorneys representing eight out of the 12 defendants stated that the most severe accusations against their clients had been dropped.
Three students from Maryland, Zachary Leinemann, Elijah Johnson, and Logan Clark, are still facing hate crime charges. David Moore, who is representing Mr. Clark, mentioned that his client has a hearing scheduled for Thursday and he anticipates that the charges will be dismissed. It is uncertain if Mr. Leinemann’s lawyer has commented on the case, and it is unclear if Mr. Johnson has legal representation at this time.
The group of 12 men who were initially accused of hate crimes have had those charges dropped. The individuals involved are Riley Brister, Ryder Baker, Bennan Aird, Cruz Cespedes, Dylan Earp, Cameron Guy, Jacob Howard, Eric Sinclair, Patrick Gutierrez, Dylan Pietuszka, Sean Antone, and Benjamin Brandenburg.
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