Inquiry hears of vlence at gay beats | Mandurah Mail | Mandurah, WA

Contents:

• POLICE 'SEEMED OBLIV' TO GAY BEAT NEAR CLIFF ATH
• GUILTY VERDICT FOR 1987 MURR SYDNEY 'GAY BEAT'
• INQUIRY HEARS OF VLENCE AT GAY BEATS
• EXPLORE GAY ROOMS & RENTALS MANDURAH

POLICE 'SEEMED OBLIV' TO GAY BEAT NEAR CLIFF ATH

(Bian De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)When police found 18-year-old Mark Stewart ad at the bottom of a cliff near a known gay beat on Sydney's northern beach, they quickly led out foul a special missn of quiry to spected gay hate crim has heard NSW Police should have done more to vtigate if Mr Stewart was ath near Manly 1976 is the last a tranche of four s beg examed by the probe, which was lnched at the urgg of a NSW parliamentary quiry to LGBTQI hate crim om 1970 to is unclear whether Mr Stewart fell to his ath as a rult of suici, accint or homici, unsel assistg the quiry William Mars told the hearg police should have done more to nvass the area for potential evince or Mars cricised police for losg Mr Stewart's se file as well as a potentially tellg note found on his body, which uld have been the clue on whether he had met up wh a potential romantic tert at a Kgs Cross gay bar. Officers appeared obliv to the fact Mr Stewart may have been the area bee was a known gay beat, even though police had been btg men for homosexual activi there, Commissner John Sackar was hate asslts were a mon occurrence Manly durg the 1970s but the police report found "no spic circumstanc" surroundg the ath. "One might have hoped that potential offendg motivated by gay hatred would have been a nsiratn the mds of police officers, " Mr Mars said.

Earlier, the quiry examed the se of Carl Stockton, a 52-year-old tra driver who was found lyg on an ner Sydney street 1996, vered blood and sufferg severe head Stockton, who was openly gay, died five days later at St Vcent's Mr Stewart's se, there was not enough evince to terme that Mr Stockton was targeted for his sexualy, even though he had prevly been the victim of several gay hate attacks, unsel assistg the quiry Christe Melis told the did not follow up on tip-offs about a group of men the area who were allegedly bashg patrons at Bar Cleveland, a pub equented by gay men that Mr Stockton attend on the night he staed his was mon for victims of LGBTQI bias crim not to report to police at the time due to "mistst and act relatns", Ms Melis said. Homosexual nduct was crimalised NSW 1984 but homophobic attus were still rife the muny durg the 1980s and '90s, and anti-gay bashgs were special missn is due to liver s report to the NSW ernor June. Raymond Keam was fatally bashed 1987 a Sydney park known as a gay beat.

GUILTY VERDICT FOR 1987 MURR SYDNEY 'GAY BEAT'

(PR HANDOUT IMAGE PHOTO)A 36-year-old ld se is nearg s long-overdue ncln after a jury returned a guilty verdict for murr at a well-known gay beat Sydney's east. A NSW Supreme Court jury returned s guilty verdict on Wednday after hearg that Early had attacked the 43-year-old martial arts expert Randwick's Alison Park spectg he was homosexual.

INQUIRY HEARS OF VLENCE AT GAY BEATS

A post-mortem examatn revealed he died om severe head juri and a 1988 qut found Mr Keam died after beg stck by a person or persons Park had a reputatn for beg a gay beat, crown prosecutor Ken McKay SC told the jury as the trial verdict spe a wholly circumstantial se beg brought agast Early wh no wns seeg he had any ntact wh Mr June 2021 a $1 ln reward was offered for rmatn about the was arrted at a home Clayton, Victoria two months later and was extraded to NSW where he remaed for the Keam's hherto unsolved ath was one of 88 killgs between 1976 and 2000 recently reviewed by police probg potential gay-hate vlence and allegatns of prr intified as heterosexual, was divorced om one woman and a facto relatnship wh another, havg a child wh each. (PR HANDOUT IMAGE PHOTO)Men at a popular Sydney gay beat had to stter when a r reered towards them "like was on a kangaroo shoot", an quiry has r's headlights and an apparent spotlight were blazg as the r drove at men at Rhcutters Bay Park Sydney's east, the 1990s. "It was a by Saturday night and men were stterg everywhere, nng like the dickens, " Barry Charl said on 72-year-old long-time gay rights activist was givg evince at the NSW Special Commissn of Inquiry to LGBTIQ hate is vtigatg historil hate crim agast the queer muny, particularly a wave of gay hate homicis and other crim Sydney durg the AIDS epimic of the 1980s.

EXPLORE GAY ROOMS & RENTALS MANDURAH

Dcribg himself as a "beats queen", Mr Charl said he was aware that vlence agast gay men at beats was occurrg before the equented them between 1969 and 1998, visg at least 40 different on around Sydney.

"Hangg around for longer than necsary was dangero, bee you knew you uld be apprehend, or were danger of vlence and some men were at risk of beg exposed as gay, " he Charl listed a strg of vlent acts he wnsed or experienced at beats, tellg the quiry he managed to sprt over the footbridge away om the r at the Rhcutters Bay cint.