By Ivan Pereira
A Jamaica man was sentenced last week to more than three years in prison for beating an openly gay man while shouting homophobic slurs, the Queens district attorney said.
Dario Reid Sr., 46, of 177th Street, pleaded guilty to assault as a hate crime last month in the attack and stabbing of a neighbor in their apartment building, Queens DA Richard Brown said.
Reid, along with his son, who also pleaded guilty to assault, dragged the victim out of the building and hurt him so badly that he required hospitalization, according to the DA.
“Crimes of hate will not be tolerated here in Queens County, which is the most diverse county in the United States. Today’s sentence reflects the seriousness of the crime and should serve as a warning to those who would prey on someone merely because they share a different gender, race, religion, ethnicity or sexual preference,” he said in a statement.
Around noon Nov. 12, 2009, Marquis Devereaux was inside the 177th Street building and called for a maintenance worker whom he thought was in the basement, Brown said. Reid Sr. objected to Deveraux’s calls and got into a verbal argument during which he addressed Devereaux as a f—-t and used other homophobic terms, according to Brown.
Devereaux, who is openly gay, left the hallway but returned and called for the maintenance worker again, but Reid Sr. came out and attacked him, the DA said.
He then dragged Devereaux out to the side of the building, called his son Dario Reid Jr., 20, and the two began to beat their neighbor, according to the DA.
Reid Sr. eventually threatened to kill Devereaux and stabbed him in the leg with a kitchen knife, the DA said. The neighbor was rushed to a hospital and needed 10 staples to his leg, Brown said.
Queens Supreme Court Justice Joel L. Blumenfeld sentenced Reid. Sr. Jan. 26 to 3 1/2 years in prison plus five years post supervision, according to the DA.
Reid Jr. is scheduled to be sentenced in May, according to Brown.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
