On Tuesday, March 5, a delegation of 23 SWOSU Doctor of Pharmacy students, accompanied by three faculty members, participated in the annual Pharmacy Legislative
Mark and Julianne Henry say they remain convinced that a neighbor who they claim threatened to shoot their dog this summer, alleging it had killed livestock, really had targeted them because of a prominent Black Lives Matter sign.
But Assistant District Attorney Chris Walsh said he ultimately made the difficult decision not to charge Matthew Bearry with a hate crime.
Bearry, 46, was charged initially with being a felon in possession of a firearm, a felony; and for brandishing a weapon and impersonating a peace officer, both misdemeanors. The felony has since been dismissed by a judge.
“This was a close call,” Walsh said. “One of the elements we would have had to prove for it to be a hate crime is that the crime was committed ‘for the specific purpose of intimidating or interfering with victim’s free exercise or enjoyment of a right secured by the Constitution, and that defendant did so because of (the) victim’s race.”