I will never understand how people can be so utterly filled with hatred and rage that they feel compelled to physically attack complete strangers simply based on that person's sexual orientation. It must be mental illness coupled with conservative values.

These kind of attacks happen everyday and largely go unreported. I am so glad that Mr Garcia is going to make a recovery. Mr Charles is the product of engineered hate. Our countries elected officials, particularly those in the republican party, are responsible for stoking this type of bigotry and disgusting behavior. The "Christian Conservatives" are some of the worst. Any politician that won't stand up and condemn this type of behavior needs to be ousted and furthermore banned from holding office. It is inhumane, reprehensible, and quite frankly unacceptable. ANY ABUSE IS UNACCEPTABLE! It doesn't matter if a person is male, female, LGBTQIA, or whatever their race, creed, or personal beliefs are. NOBODY SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO BLUDGEON ANOTHER HUMAN BEING FOR THEM BEING DIFFERENT! WE ARE ALL ENTITLED TO BASIC HUMAN DECENCY AND RESPECT! It needs to be made 100% zero tolerance for such acts. It is a willful and wanton attack steeped in ignorance and bigotry.

Maurice Antwan Charles needs be sectioned for society's safety.

Infuriating, disheartening, and scary. Note the end of the article: "It is unclear if Broward County prosecutors will add an additional hate crime charge to the current aggravated battery charge facing Charles."
Unclear if a hate crime will be charged?!? This is why I utterly mistrust the legal system. Yes, they do sometimes get it right, but there is little to no consistency, which totally undermines any hope of feeling secure or protected.

That's sad to hear with homo phobes running the state. It's only going to get worse.

Glad the cops got the guy. Since the evil bastard asked about being gay, this should, without a doubt be a hate crime. Not a for sure thing for a Florida DA to prosecute however.