The two testified Tuesday about the excruciating pain they said they suffered as a result of the attack. They’ll be all right; it was just a little hot water’.
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An Atlanta man who was indicted for having attacked a gay couple with a pot of boiling hot water while they slept was convicted on all charges on Wednesday.
It took the jury about 90 minutes Wednesday afternoon to convict Blackwell on all 10 counts, including aggravated assault and aggravated battery.
“You had so many outs where the voice of reason could have taken over”, Newkirk said. Prosecutors said Blackwell was upset that two gay men were sleeping together under his roof, and that the attack was premeditated.
Then Blackwell allegedly yanked him off the mattress and yelled, “Get out of my house with all that gay”, Tolbert recalled to WSBTV.
Georgia does not have a hate crime law.
Blackwell’s defense attorney acknowledged that he poured water on the pair, but asked jurors to find that it was reckless conduct.
“It’s not about hate”. He was awaiting sentencing following the verdict.
Blackwell, the mother’s boyfriend, reportedly frequented the apartment. On February 12, they were sleeping at Foster’s sister’s apartment, where Blackwell lived with Foster when he was in town, when Blackwell dumped boiled water on them.
She admitted the burning was “revolting” and “repugnant”, but said the 40 year punishment did not fit the homophobic crime, arguing that it could have been worse.
Prosecutor Fani Willis scoffed at the idea. They was stuck like two hot dogs. He didn’t intend to hurt the young men, he just wanted to get them up and get them to stop any disrespectful behavior, Walker said.
The prosecutor said Blackwell’s actions were well-thought-out.
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It was, in fact, underneath the kitchen sink, where Blackwell found the largest pot he could, to fill up with boiling water, prosecutors said. That gave him plenty of time to think about what he was doing and the consequences, Willis said. As 11Alive previously reported, one victim, Gooden, was in a coma for two weeks.and was left unable to work due to the burn damage. Both men suffered severe burns beeding multiple surgeries and skin grafts.
