Jody Dobrowski
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Jody Dobrowski (1981 - October 14, 2005) was a 24-year old assistant bar manager who was murdered on Clapham Common in south London. He was beaten to death with punches and kicks by two men who perceived him to be gay, and who had attacked men previously on Clapham Common. The elder of the two, Scott Walker, had previously served time in prison for threatening to kill his mother, strangling her and trying to bite off her nose.
Dobrowski was attacked on the way home from a friend's house that night and was so badly injured that his own family couldn't identify him. His death led to the sentencing of his murderers, Thomas Pickford and Scott Walker, for at least 28 years after being given a life sentence each. The judge, Brian Barker, said that the pair had gone to Clapham Common to commit acts of "homophobic thuggery". This was a landmark case in Britain, where Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 was utilised in sentencing the killers. This Act empowers courts to impose tougher sentences for offences motivated or aggravated by the victim's sexual orientation in England and Wales.
Dobrowski's family delivered a speech outside the Old Bailey after the sentencing of his killers, and his close friends and family wore sunflowers in his memory.
[edit] External links
- Murder on the common - The Times
- Men jailed for gay barman murder - BBC
