Editor’s note: The video above is from previous coverage.
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – A man has been indicted for allegedly vandalizing property at a Black LGBTQ+ event and defecating on a Pride flag in August, Atlanta officials announced on Friday.
Ralph George Drabic faces two charges: second-degree criminal damage to property and criminal trespass, both of which were believed to be “motivated by bias or prejudice,” according to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
“In my first year as district attorney, we were to our knowledge the first Georgia prosecutor’s office to use Georgia’s hate crimes law,” Willis said in a statement. “If you commit a crime motivated by hate in this community, our partner law enforcement agencies will investigate, and if the evidence shows that a hate crime was committed, we will indict you and use Georgia’s hate crimes statute to seek enhanced punishment.”
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Vandalism at Atlanta Black LGBTQ event under investigation
On Aug. 28, police were called to an event space at the Starling Hotel in Midtown. Organizers with Global Black Pride, which had teamed up with Atlanta Black Pride for 2024’s Atlanta Black Pride Weekend, estimated that the vandal caused between $8,000 and $10,000 in damage.
“It was just really devastating to have to come into the room and see, one, our things flipped over and ravaged,” Princess Jauan Durbin, the Youth Ambassador for Global Black Pride, told Atlanta News First at the time. “We will not allow anyone that does not want to acknowledge who we are to determine how we show up in spaces that we have created for ourselves.”
Police said it appeared an intoxicated hotel guest caused the damage.
Drabic’s indictment comes on the same day that Atlanta Pride kicks off. The celebration is the largest free Pride festival in the United States and is expected to attract up to 300,000 visitors, culminating in a massive Pride parade on Sunday.
GUIDE TO PRIDE: Everything you need to know for 2024 Atlanta Pride Parade and festival
The district attorney’s office asks anyone who believes they have been the victim of a hate crime to report it to police and email FCDA.biascrimes@fultoncountyga.gov or call the Hate Crimes Unit at 404-612-4795.
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