Matthew Ashcraft

Matthew Ashcraft, 19, was attacked outside of a gay bar in Newton, Kentucky, in June 2004. Ashcraft – an Ohio National Guardsman who is not gay – came to the aid of of Leon Hughes, a gay man who was being beaten outside the bar.

Matthew Ashcraft (far left)

Ashcraft and two gay friends of his were on their way to Woolly's on Monmouth an LGBT friendly bar, at about 10:30 p.m. on July 26, 2004, when they saw Leon Hughes – a gay man – being harassed by Steven Ard.¹⁾

Ard had been drinking at Taylor's Landing, a bar adjacent to Woolly's, and began yelling anti-gay slurs at Hughes upon seeing him exit Woolly's.²⁾ Hughes told reporters that upon exiting the bar, two men came towards him from Taylor's Landing.³⁾ One of them – Ard – yelled at Hughes, “Come here, faggot! Why don't you and your little faggot dog come here?”⁴⁾ Hughes had exited the club to walk Maggie, the bar's golden retriever.⁵⁾

When Ard punched Hughes in the ribs⁶⁾, Ashcraft jumped on Ard and pinned him to the ground.

Bar patrons called police as the fight moved across the street, to the Taylor's Landing parking lot. The fight seemed over when the attackers ran away.⁷⁾ But Ard returned with a baseball bat, ran up to Ashcraft screaming “You faggots! I'm gonna kill you faggots!”, and struck Ashcraft on the back of his skull with the bat.⁸⁾ Ashcraft fell to the ground, and witnesses shielded him with their own bodies until police arrived.

Ard said that Ashcraft and friends had chased him to his home, and he used the bat to defend himself.⁹⁾

The police arrived to find Ashcraft unconscious on the ground. Officer Greg Ripperberg saw Ard running towards his Dayton Street residence with a bat in hand.¹⁰⁾ Officers found Ard inside home, hiding under collection of sheets and blankets.¹¹⁾

Medics reported that Ashcraft began vomiting and convulsing on the way to University Hospital in Cincinnati. He was being prepped for surgery as medics left the scene.¹²⁾ Ashcraft was rushed to University Hospital in Cincinnati, where he was treated for skull fracture, cranial bleeding, and a blood clot on his brain.

Ashcraft was uninsured, and his medical bills topped $29,000. A fund was set up at U.S. Bank in Newport to help with medical expenses.¹³⁾ A benefit for Ascraft was held at Woolly's, on July 7, 2004, where about $200 was raised to help with his medical bills. Ashcraft attended, but became ill during the benefit and had to be taken to the hospital. Woolly's owner Rick Petri said he planned to host more benefits. Another bar owner, Carl Fox, reported receiving a death threat in the mail after speaking in favor of gay rights on television.¹⁴⁾ Ashcraft suffered paralyzing headaches following the attack and was discharged from the National Guard, but hoped to re-enlist in one year.

On June 8, 2004, Ard appeared in court and waived a preliminary hearing in favor of a grand jury hearing on felony charges of first degree assault. Judge Karen Thomas raise Ard's bond to $50,000 from the $20,000 requested by prosecutors.

Officer Ripberger spoke at the hearing, and told Judge Thomas that he considered the assault a hate crime. Under Kentucky law, that means the possibility of parole is removed during the sentencing phase. The Kentucky law includes crimes based on sexual orientation, even though Ashcraft is not gay.¹⁵⁾

On September 9, 2004, Ard entered a plea of not guilty to the charge of first degree assault.

On January 5, 2005, when his trial opened, Ard pleaded guilty to second degree assault. Prosecutors dropped the original first degree assault charge and recommended a 15 year sentence. The change from the original charge meant that Ard would have to serve 20% of his sentence before being eligible for parole, instead of 85%.¹⁶⁾

On February 4, 2005, Ard attempted to withdraw his earlier guilty pleas and plea agreement. Judge Leonard Kopowski rejected Ard's request and sentenced him to 15 years in prison.¹⁷⁾