Ohio State student who urinated on pride flag gets hate crime charge dismissed
An Ohio State University student pleaded guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanor charge after being caught on surveillance camera urinating on a gay pride flag on a home's porch in the Weinland Park neighborhood.
Trey Fetzer, 21, had been charged with ethnic intimidation, criminal mischief, criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.
Fetzer's plea on Wednesday was solely to the criminal trespass charge, a fourth-degree misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of 30 days in jail. The other charges against him were dismissed.
Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Jim O'Grady ordered Fetzer to pay a $250 fine and court costs and serve one year of probation. O'Grady told Fetzer he was lucky he wasn't receiving jail time. A 30-day jail sentence was imposed but suspended, meaning Fetzer will not serve any of the time.
"You need to understand that what you did was horrible, and that’s a nice way of putting it," O'Grady said. "I just can’t understand why someone would do something like this. People never cease to amaze me with the hate they’ll have and the things they’ll do."
The surveillance video showed Fetzer walking onto the porch of a duplex on Summit Street around 10:40 p.m. on Feb. 8. Fetzer is seen on the video exposing himself and appearing to pee on a pride flag, court records say.
Fetzer then is seen on the video banging on the doors of the duplex and yelling homophobic remarks. Court records say another person is seen in the video, appearing to be filming Fetzer on a phone.
The video capturing the entire incident lasts about 35 seconds.
The occupants of the duplex told Columbus police, who began investigating after the surveillance camera footage was posted on Reddit, that Fetzer had returned to the home less than a week after the incident, attempting to apologize for his actions.
Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein's office filed charges against Fetzer about two weeks after the incident.
Assistant City Attorney Joe Gibson said the other charges in the case, including ethnic intimidation, were dismissed after consulting with the victims in the case and after Fetzer jumped through numerous hoops.
Gibson said Fetzer attended lectures, volunteered with Stonewall and at Cincinnati's Pride celebration, and attended counseling.
"This is the restorative justice that we’re trying to do here in Municipal Court to try and use this as a teachable moment. He is being convicted of a crime here, but he did, in our estimation, learn some valuable lessons here," Gibson said.
Fetzer's attorney, Hank Schaab, said Ohio State University had suspended Fetzer but he has since been reinstated after completing multiple requirements the university had put in place.
Fetzer told O'Grady he had been drinking on the night in question and had learned from his mistakes.
"It’s not the man I was raised to be. I was raised to respect everyone, no matter who they are," Fetzer said. "My actions have deeply affected a lot of families and people, and that’s not what I wanted to happen. I want everyone to be happy and respected by everyone else. Nothing like this will ever happen again."
After a conversation with Schaab and Gibson outside the courtroom, O'Grady told Fetzer that if he faces any new criminal charges — particularly involving similar behavior or alcohol — he will face even more problems in the future.
"You knew it was wrong and you knew you were being dumb. It’s really problematic," O'Grady said. "I hope you take to heart everything I said. Hopefully, the programming and the classes you went to do change you."
In a statement released by the Columbus City Attorney's office, one of the victims said the incident sent a message of hate.
"When Mr. Fetzer urinated on our property and shouted vulgar threats to us, he didn’t just go where he wasn’t supposed to and damage property. He sent a message to us and those like us that we don’t belong here and should hide who we are. We refuse to do that," the victim said. "This act sent a message to the LGBTQ+ community of Columbus that you might be next. Mr. Fetzer may not have considered the impact this act had, but we’re all affected by his actions just the same.
"We live here in Columbus because it’s generally a safer and more welcoming place for us. Some of us moved here from other parts of Ohio specifically for that reason. Mr. Fetzer chipped away at that sense of safety, and needs to be held accountable for doing so."
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State student who peed on pride flag gets hate crime charge dropped
