Fifteen minutes later, Morales stands accused of shooting and killing Harlem resident Marc Carson, who did not know the alleged gunman and was walking around Greenwich Village in New York City with a companion. Police have called the act a hate crime, and it highlights a stunning rise in bias-based attacks in a city known for its diversity and progressiveness on gay issues.
After going to the bathroom in public, Morales, 33, then went inside the restaurant and asked if someone was going to call the police about him. Police said Morales told both the bartender and the manager, "if you do call the police, I'll shoot you" and opened his sweatshirt to reveal a shoulder holster with a revolver and made anti-gay remarks, police said.
Out on the street minutes later, the gunman and two others approached a 32-year-old identified by police as Harlem resident Marc Carson, and a companion. One of the three men yelled out a gay slur and asked, "What are you, gay wrestlers?" according to Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
The two men stopped, turned and, according to Kelly, said to the group taunting them, "What did you say?" - then kept walking.
