A Philadelphia judge has denied convicted gay basher Kathryn Knott's re-sentencing request.
Knott, who was found guilty of simple assault and related charges in the 2014 attack of a gay couple in City Center, Philadelphia, had requested that she be allowed to record a PSA instead of serving the five-to-10 month prison sentence she received.
Knott's lawyer said he hoped the PSA would “take the infamy of the arrest and maybe heal some wounds.” The judge was unmoved by this argument.
“The sentence is well within the guidelines and is as appropriate as I can provide within the law and shall remain,” Covington told Knott and her attorney, Bill Brennan, in court. “The motion is denied.”
Afterward, Brennan said he was disappointed by the judge's decision, but thanked her for hearing the request.
“We're disappointed that some of the options we presented were not granted,” he said. “I thank and applaud Judge Covington for allowing our process to take place in an open court. I can deal with a denial. I can't deal with a non-response or a stonewall.”
Knott has 30 days to file an appeal, which Brennan said is “certainly something that's on the table.”
Covington came down hard in her final decision:
“As injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, hatred toward any group is no different than hatred toward all of us,” Covington said. “Every single one of us has a right to be who we are, to love who we want and to walk down the street and enjoy the city safely, without fear of ridicule, of torture, of attack.”
Assistant District Attorney Allison Ruth said the judge's remarks were no surprise.
“I thought they were very articulate and exactly on point,” Ruth said. “We're happy that she did the right thing and kept the sentence the same.”
