Gay man says police ignored hate crime on 16th Street Mall

Bianca Prieto, Rocky Mountain News

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

A Denver police officer is under investigation after a gay law student accused him of failing to arrest a man for an alleged hate crime.

Nima Daivari, 24, of New York, filed a complaint against officer Richard Boehnlein, saying the officer told him to "go home" after he was attacked by a stranger on the 16th Street Mall.

Daivari, who was visiting a cousin in Denver, said Sunday's incident began shortly after midnight when a man walked past him and made a derogatory, anti-gay statement.

Daivari turned around and asked the man what he had said. That confrontation turned into a fight, with both men throwing punches.

When officers arrived and separated them, Daivari said he repeatedly asked Boehnlein to press charges. Instead, his attacker was let go without any consequences, he said.

Boehnlein, who has been with the department since 2006, did not file a report when the fight occurred. A police report, stamped with a later time, shows statements by the victim and witnesses were taken at the police district Sunday night.

Daivari, his cousin and her boyfriend went to the District 6 police station after the fight because Daivari was determined to file a report about the officer's conduct and the incident.

"(Boehnlein) didn't even get the guy's name," Daivari said. "For all we know, that person could be walking down the street, punching every gay guy he sees in the face."

The entire incident is being investigated by the police department's internal affairs division, said Detective Virginia Quinones.

A message left for Boehnlein was not returned.

According to police documents, the suspect and Daivari exchanged words before he punched Daivari in the face.

Daivari, an amateur boxer, responded by punching the man twice and putting him in a headlock to restrain him. The man's girlfriend punched Daivari several times in the face before police arrived, he said.

The suspect is described as a white man between 20 and 30 years old, about 6 foot, 2 inches tall and 200 pounds. He was wearing a green shirt and blue jeans.

"I feel like the attack can happen anywhere," Daivari said, "but I feel that the officer's response was what the stereotype is - that they don't care about gay rights."

Daivari is a second-year law student at New York Law School in New York City.

The Colorado Anti-Violence Program, a gay rights advocacy group, has been compiling information about bias-motivated crimes across the state and plans to release its findings next month, said Kelly Costello, director of victims services for the program.

"We've been seeing a rise in media attention on specific incidents and hate crimes that are going on, and, unfortunately, a lot more are occurring and not being covered as closely," Costello said. "Each incident threatens the safety of the whole community."

prietob@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5219