Parole DENIED for murderer of gay man

Not necessarily a victory but still not a bad thing

I have just received word via email that Stephen Moller, the man who murdered Sean Kennedy in 2007, has been denied early parole.

Here are the facts:

Sean William Kennedy, 20, was attacked in the early morning of May 17, 2007 outside the former Brew's Bar in Greenville, South Carolina. His assailant, Stephen Andrew Moller, pulled up in a car, threw one punch after reportedly yelling anti-gay slurs, and fled. Kennedy died about 17 hours later from the brain injury he sustained, and friends and family believe he was targeted at least in part due to his sexual orientation.

Since South Carolina has no hate crime statute, no enhancement was available for Moller's June 2008 sentence of five years in prison on a reduced charge of involuntary manslaughter. The judge reduced the sentence to three years with credit for seven months' time served and ordered Moller to seek help to manage anger and substance abuse.

There was a huge possibility that Moller could have gotten out on parole this month. Elke Kennedy, the mother of Stephen, and the SC Progressive Network organized a letter drive geared to persuading the parole board not to let Moller out early.

Yesterday (and I did mention this as the event I had attended), there was a candlelight vigil held at the State House:

Friends and family of Kennedy met at the State House at 5:30pm to protest an early release for Stephen Moller and to hold a candlelight memorial for Kennedy.

There are no hate crime laws in this state, and Kennedy's family is working to change that.

It was just the kind of night Sean's mom says her son would have lived for.

"He always said, 'when I get older, I'm gonna change this, make sure people are treated equally,'" says Elke Kennedy.

But the fact is, Sean Kennedy's death brought many people together.

"This is my mission. Sean's death, in order for it not to be in vain, my job is to do whatever I can to change things so it doesn't happen again," says Kennedy.

Sean's death in Greenville was never deemed a hate crime, because hate crimes aren't recognized in this state.

But if you ask the folks at the rally, they happen.

"In high school, I was accosted constantly, dragged into a bathroom, had my face beat up and lost three teeth from it," said one person.

"We're not here to get revenge," said Kennedy. "This is about social justice, every citizen in South Carolina deserves protection."

Kennedy wants her son's killer to stay in prison. She took her concern to the parole board, asking for him to stay longer than eight months.

Whether it was a hate crime or not, she says its a light sentence for a heavy loss.

"As a matter of fact he is here, he is with us tonight. Maybe that's why we have such a beautiful evening," she said.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center there are 45 listed hate groups in the state, one of the highest numbers in the US.

In addition, over 400 letters were written to the parole board asking that Moller not be paroled.

This isn't a victory per se. Sean won't be coming back and nothing can take away Elke's pain. She lost her child due to a senseless act.

But since the time of Sean's death, Elke has been speaking out around the state in efforts to bring attention to the need for hate crimes legislation as well as the need to stop the violence that plague lgbt youth.

She should be commended for all that she has done. And although this isn't a victory per se, I hope that she takes solace in the fact that so many are listening to her message.