John Russell Howald (Booking photo via U.S. Marshals Service)
GREAT FALLS, Mont. | A Montana man was sentenced to 18 years in prison for attempting to shoot victims with the intent to rid his town of LGBTQ+ residents, the U.S. Department of Justice announced in a press release June 14.
After a four day trial in February, a jury convicted the man, John Russell Howald, of firing an AK-style rifle into the home of a woman who was known to be a lesbian, and “then walking further into town intending to target others he perceived to be lesbian, queer, and gay.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said, “This defendant is being held accountable for his horrific attempted mass shooting against the LGBTQI+ community in a Montana town.”
The defendant “set out to rid the town of all LGBTQI+ members by killing them,” Clarke said. “He shot into the home of a lesbian resident, nearly killing her, with the hope of inspiring similar attacks around the country.”
This month, the White House announced plans to better combat anti-LGBTQ+ violence through a community safety partnership administered by the Justice Department along with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Neera Tanden, White House Domestic Policy Advisor, told reporters the partnership will help LGBTQ+ community centers “prepare for the worst” – including “bomb threats, active shooters, and cybersecurity threats – while also protecting “healthcare providers who serve the community by working with doctors and medical associations.”
“This Pride Month,” DOJ wrote in the press release about Howald, “we affirm our commitment to using the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Hate Crimes Prevention Act to hold perpetrators of hate-fueled violence targeting the LGBTQI+ community accountable.”
“Motivated by hatred of the LGBTQI+ community and armed with multiple firearms and high-capacity magazines, this defendant sought to intimidate – even terrorize – an entire community by shooting into the victim’s home trying to kill her for no reason other than her sexual orientation, this defendant did something distinctly un-American by depriving her of her sense of safety, freedom and privacy all at once,” said Steven Dettelbach, director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
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