M E D I A   R E L E A S E For Immediate Release March 28, 2006 Guilty Verdict in Trial of Dwan Prince's Attacker Steven Pomie found Guilty on All Counts Including Hate Crimes Charge for Brutal Anti-Gay Brownsville Attack New York – Almost nine months after the brutal anti-gay assault on Dwan Prince in Brownsville last June, Steven Pomie was found guilty in the attack by a Brooklyn jury.  Prince was savagely beaten by three men screaming anti-gay slurs, and in the days after the attack, authorities identified Pomie as part of the group responsible for the beating.  The attack took place outside Prince's apartment building in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn Pomie faced five charges including Assault in the 1st Degree, and Assault in the First Degree as a hate crime.  "Last summer's assault on Dwan Prince was probably the most vicious hate violence attack against our community last year, and Dwan and his family will live with the pain inflicted by Pomie's hatred for the rest of their lives," said Clarence Patton, the Anti-Violence Project's executive director. Though Prince, who gave dramatic testimony at the trial has made remarkable strides towards recovery, the attack left him in a coma for a period of time and he suffered a number of injuries that will require ongoing rehabilitation.  "We are pleased with the excellent work of the police investigators and the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office in bringing some justice to Dwan; so often the perpetrators of anti-LGTB hate violence are never apprehended, let alone tried and found guilty," Patton said.  "We are also very proud of the work that our staff and volunteers did with other community members in the immediate aftermath of this assault," added Patton.  Just after Dwan was assaulted, the Anti-Violence Project sent staff and volunteers into Brownsville to flyer the neighborhood to solicit information and witnesses and held a City Hall press conference to raise visibility around the case. The agency also had staff monitoring the trial, which lasted about a week. "We do have some additional questions about why some of the individuals who were involved in the attack with Pomie were not or have not been brought to trial or charged, and do plan to follow up with the District Attorney's Office on that issue" Patton concluded. Victim impact statements and the start of sentencing are expected to begin on April 24. According to Anti-Violence Project statistics, the organization on average receives a call about a new anti-LGTB incident every 12 hours, and a call about a new anti-LGTB assault every 36 hours. In 2004, the Anti-Violence Project served over 2,000 victims of violence. The Anti-Violence Project's annual reports on hate and domestic violence can be accessed online at http://www.avp.org/. The New York City Gay & Lesbian Anti-Violence Project (AVP) is the nation's largest service agency for victims of bias crimes against the lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual, and HIV-affected communities. Since 1980, AVP has provided counseling and advocacy for tens of thousands of survivors of bias-motivated and domestic violence, rape and sexual assault, HIV-related violence, and police misconduct. AVP documents incidents of violence against and within LGTB communities, educates the public about the effects of violence, against or within our communities, and works to reform public policies impacting all lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual, and HIV-affected people. AVP provides free and confidential assistance to crime victims through its 24-hour bilingual hotline (212-714-1141).