Murder of Jody Dobrowski: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Victim of gay bashers in 2005 in England}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date= |
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}} |
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{{Use British English|date=August 2012}} |
{{Use British English|date=August 2012}} |
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{{Infobox person |
{{Infobox person |
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| name = Jody Dobrowski |
| name = Jody Dobrowski |
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| image = Jody-dobrowski.jpg |
| image = Jody-dobrowski.jpg |
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| image_size = 150px |
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| caption = |
| caption = |
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| birth_date = {{ |
| birth_date = {{birth date|1981|6|27|df=y}} |
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| birth_place = [[Stroud, Gloucestershire]] |
| birth_place = [[Stroud, Gloucestershire]], UK |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|2005|10|15|1981|7|27|df=y}} |
| death_date = {{death date and age|2005|10|15|1981|7|27|df=y}} |
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| death_place = [[Clapham Common]], London, UK |
| death_place = [[Clapham Common]], London, UK |
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| death_cause = Beating |
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| occupation = Assistant |
| occupation = Assistant bar manager at [[Jongleurs (comedy club)|Jongleurs]] comedy club in Camden Town, London |
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}} |
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⚫ | '''Jody Dobrowski''' (27 June 1981 – 15 October 2005) was an English 24-year-old assistant bar manager who was murdered on [[Clapham Common]] in south London. On 14 October, at around midnight, he was beaten to death with punches and kicks by two men who believed him to be [[gay]], and pronounced dead in the early hours of 15 October. Tests carried out at [[St. George's Hospital]] in [[Tooting]], [[South London]] revealed Dobrowski had a swollen brain, broken nose and extensive bruising to his neck, spine and groin. His family was unable to identify him due to his face being so badly disfigured and he had to be identified by fingerprints. |
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⚫ | His two assailants, Thomas Pickford and Scott Walker, pleaded guilty to the murder of Dobrowski at the [[Old Bailey]] criminal court on 12 May 2006 and were sentenced to [[life imprisonment]] on 16 June 2006 with a minimum of 28 years to be served. Both men had been involved in an attack against a gay man two weeks prior to the murder of Dobrowski. Walker had been out on licence due to threats against his mother but the licence had expired the day before the murder; however, it had not expired at the time of the previous [[homophobic]] assault. |
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⚫ | '''Jody Dobrowski''' (27 June 1981 – 15 October 2005) was |
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⚫ | This was a landmark case in Britain, where Section 146 of the [[Criminal Justice Act 2003]] was utilised in sentencing the killers. This Act empowers courts to impose tougher sentences for offences motivated or aggravated by the victim's [[sexual orientation]] in England and Wales.<ref>[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2003/30044--o.htm#146 Transcript of Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010114615/http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2003/30044--o.htm |date=10 October 2007 }}</ref> The trial judge was [[Brian Barker]] QC. |
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⚫ | His two assailants, Thomas Pickford and Scott Walker, pleaded guilty to the murder of Dobrowski at the [[Old Bailey]] criminal court on 12 May 2006 and sentenced to [[life imprisonment]] on 16 June 2006 with a minimum of 28 years to be served. Both men had been involved in an attack against a gay man two weeks prior to the murder of Dobrowski. Walker had been out on licence due to threats against his mother but the licence had expired the day before the murder; however, it had not expired at the time of the previous [[homophobic]] assault. |
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⚫ | This was a landmark case in Britain, where Section 146 of the [[Criminal Justice Act 2003]] was utilised in sentencing the killers. This Act empowers courts to impose tougher sentences for offences motivated or aggravated by the victim's [[sexual orientation]] in England and Wales.<ref>[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2003/30044--o.htm#146 Transcript of Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003]</ref> The trial judge was |
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==Background== |
==Background== |
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Dobrowski was born in [[Stroud, Gloucestershire|Stroud]], [[Gloucestershire]]. He studied BSc Biomedical Sciences with Toxicology at the [[University of Wales Institute, Cardiff]] and moved to London in 2001. There he got a job as show manager at the Battersea Jongleurs/Bar Risa club, the flagship venue of the famous stand |
Dobrowski was born on 27 June 1981 in [[Stroud, Gloucestershire|Stroud]], [[Gloucestershire]], England. He studied BSc Biomedical Sciences with Toxicology at the [[University of Wales Institute, Cardiff]] and moved to London in 2001. There he got a job as show manager at the Battersea Jongleurs/Bar Risa club, the flagship venue of the famous stand-up comedy club chain. A few weeks prior to his murder, Dobrowski was offered an assistant manager position at the [[Camden Lock]] branch of the club. |
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In an interview with ''[[The Times]]'', the bouncer for the club that Dobrowski worked at said, "if you had met this gentleman, you would know him to be a fresh-faced young man who never said a nasty word to anyone, even to the drunks who came in off the street. That was his way: a kind, sweet guy."<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article581284.ece Latest victim of a homophobia that London had thought it had left behind], timesonline.co.uk; |
In an interview with ''[[The Times]]'', the bouncer for the club that Dobrowski worked at said, "if you had met this gentleman, you would know him to be a fresh-faced young man who never said a nasty word to anyone, even to the drunks who came in off the street. That was his way: a kind, sweet guy."<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article581284.ece Latest victim of a homophobia that London had thought it had left behind] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523035355/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article581284.ece |date=23 May 2011 }}, timesonline.co.uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.</ref> After the sentencing of Pickford and Walker, Dobrowski's family made a joint statement describing him as, "an intelligent, funny, hardworking and beautiful man, whose life was brutally and mercilessly punched and kicked from him."<ref>[http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/view.php?id=1756 Jody's family calls for an end to homophobia] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070707111521/http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/view.php?id=1756 |date=7 July 2007 }}, Pink News.co.uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.</ref> |
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==The attack== |
==The attack== |
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The last hours of Dobrowski's life are not totally clear. On Friday 14 October 2005 it is reported that he visited friends in Clapham where he had worked prior to moving clubs for his promotion. He left friends at around 10.15pm and was a ten-minute walk from Clapham Common. His killers had been roaming Clapham Common after a night of |
The last hours of Dobrowski's life are not totally clear. On Friday 14 October 2005 it is reported that he visited friends in Clapham where he had worked prior to moving clubs for his promotion. He left friends at around 10.15pm and was a ten-minute walk from Clapham Common. His killers had been roaming Clapham Common after a night of drinking. The judge, Brian Barker, said that the pair had gone to Clapham Common specifically to commit acts of "homophobic thuggery". Dobrowski crossed paths with the two men who automatically assumed he was gay, as Clapham Common is a well known [[Cruising for sex|cruising]] site for [[gay men]]. |
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Police say there was a short exchange of words before Pickford started to throw punches at Dobrowski. Walker then joined in the attack. One witness who intervened was warned off and told, "We don't like |
Police say there was a short exchange of words before Pickford started to throw punches at Dobrowski. Walker then joined in the attack. One witness who intervened was warned off and told, "We don't like poofters here and that's why we can kill him if we want." They then continued their attack for an unknown length of time whilst, according to witnesses, continually throwing homophobic insults. The injuries that were left were so severe a [[pathologist]] was unable to identify how many times he had been hit but did identify 33 areas of injury to the head, face, ears and neck. Dobrowski had to be identified by fingerprints. A police officer who arrived at the scene of the crime described him as, "a bloody swollen pulp."<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5087286.stm Men jailed for gay barman murder] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060619050202/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5087286.stm |date=19 June 2006 }}, bbc/co/uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.</ref> He was unconscious when found in the early hours of Saturday 15 October and died from his injuries later in hospital. |
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There was a lot of media attention on the attack due to its brutality, |
There was a lot of media attention on the attack due to its brutality, Dobrowski's sexuality, and this being considered a hate crime. Police eventually tracked down the murderers who were arrested one week after the crime<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article581284.ece|title=Latest victim of a homophobia that London thought it had left behind|work=[[The Times]]|access-date=23 December 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523035355/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article581284.ece|archive-date=23 May 2011}}</ref> and eventually confessed on 12 May 2006. In January 2006, they denied committing the offence but later recanted. |
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==Film ''Clapham Junction''== |
==Film ''Clapham Junction''== |
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In 2007, UK's [[Channel 4]] released ''[[Clapham Junction (film)|Clapham Junction]]'', a TV drama partially based on the murder. The film, written by [[Kevin Elyot]] and directed by [[Adrian Shergold]], was shown for the first time on 22 July 2007, on Channel 4, |
In 2007, UK's [[Channel 4]] released ''[[Clapham Junction (film)|Clapham Junction]]'', a TV drama partially based on the murder. The film, written by [[Kevin Elyot]] and directed by [[Adrian Shergold]], was shown for the first time on 22 July 2007, on Channel 4, almost two years after the murder. It features [[David Leon]] as Alfie Cartwright, a gay man who is subjected to a beating on Clapham Common and dies of his injuries. It was screened to mark the 40th anniversary of the [[Sexual Offences Act 1967|decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales]], and highlighted [[violence against LGBT people|violence against gays]] and hate crimes based on sexual orientation. It was shown a second time on [[More4]] on 30 July 2007.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2007/06/15/channel-4-drama-has-echoes-of-jodis-murder/|title=Channel 4 drama has echoes of Jodi's murder|date=15 June 2007|newspaper=[[Pink Paper]]|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120828060418/http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2007/06/15/channel-4-drama-has-echoes-of-jodis-murder/|archive-date=28 August 2012}}</ref> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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{{Portal| |
{{Portal|LGBTQ}} |
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*[[Homophobia]] |
*[[Homophobia]] |
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*[[Violence against LGBT people]] |
*[[Violence against LGBT people]] |
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*''[[Clapham Junction]]'', the 2007 Channel 4 TV drama |
*''[[Clapham Junction (film)|Clapham Junction]]'', the 2007 Channel 4 TV drama |
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==References== |
==References== |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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*[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,542-1830296,00.html Murder on the common] – The Times |
*[https://archive.today/20060111232455/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,542-1830296,00.html Murder on the common] – The Times |
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*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5087286.stm Men jailed for gay barman murder] – BBC |
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5087286.stm Men jailed for gay barman murder] – BBC |
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*[http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/view.php?id=1756 Dobrowski's family release a joint statement] – PinkNews.co.uk |
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070707111521/http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/view.php?id=1756 Dobrowski's family release a joint statement] – PinkNews.co.uk |
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{{LGBT|culture=yes|rights=yes}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobrowski, Jody}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobrowski, Jody}} |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Deaths by person in London]] |
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[[Category:2005 in London]] |
[[Category:2005 in London]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:LGBTQ history in England]] |
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[[Category:2005 |
[[Category:2005 murders in the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category:2005 in |
[[Category:2005 in LGBTQ history]] |
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[[Category:Clapham]] |
[[Category:Clapham]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:LGBTQ history in the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Murder in London]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Violence against LGBTQ people in the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Deaths by beating in the United Kingdom]] |
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[[Category:Victims of anti-LGBT hate crimes]] |
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[[Category:Deaths by beating]] |
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[[Category:Gay history]] |
[[Category:Gay history]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:21st century in the London Borough of Lambeth]] |
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Latest revision as of 15:37, 2 December 2024
Jody Dobrowski | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | 15 October 2005 Clapham Common, London, UK | (aged 24)
Cause of death | Beating |
Occupation(s) | Assistant bar manager at Jongleurs comedy club in Camden Town, London |
Jody Dobrowski (27 June 1981 – 15 October 2005) was an English 24-year-old assistant bar manager who was murdered on Clapham Common in south London. On 14 October, at around midnight, he was beaten to death with punches and kicks by two men who believed him to be gay, and pronounced dead in the early hours of 15 October. Tests carried out at St. George's Hospital in Tooting, South London revealed Dobrowski had a swollen brain, broken nose and extensive bruising to his neck, spine and groin. His family was unable to identify him due to his face being so badly disfigured and he had to be identified by fingerprints.
His two assailants, Thomas Pickford and Scott Walker, pleaded guilty to the murder of Dobrowski at the Old Bailey criminal court on 12 May 2006 and were sentenced to life imprisonment on 16 June 2006 with a minimum of 28 years to be served. Both men had been involved in an attack against a gay man two weeks prior to the murder of Dobrowski. Walker had been out on licence due to threats against his mother but the licence had expired the day before the murder; however, it had not expired at the time of the previous homophobic assault.
This was a landmark case in Britain, where Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 was utilised in sentencing the killers. This Act empowers courts to impose tougher sentences for offences motivated or aggravated by the victim's sexual orientation in England and Wales.[1] The trial judge was Brian Barker QC.
Background
[edit]Dobrowski was born on 27 June 1981 in Stroud, Gloucestershire, England. He studied BSc Biomedical Sciences with Toxicology at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff and moved to London in 2001. There he got a job as show manager at the Battersea Jongleurs/Bar Risa club, the flagship venue of the famous stand-up comedy club chain. A few weeks prior to his murder, Dobrowski was offered an assistant manager position at the Camden Lock branch of the club.
In an interview with The Times, the bouncer for the club that Dobrowski worked at said, "if you had met this gentleman, you would know him to be a fresh-faced young man who never said a nasty word to anyone, even to the drunks who came in off the street. That was his way: a kind, sweet guy."[2] After the sentencing of Pickford and Walker, Dobrowski's family made a joint statement describing him as, "an intelligent, funny, hardworking and beautiful man, whose life was brutally and mercilessly punched and kicked from him."[3]
The attack
[edit]The last hours of Dobrowski's life are not totally clear. On Friday 14 October 2005 it is reported that he visited friends in Clapham where he had worked prior to moving clubs for his promotion. He left friends at around 10.15pm and was a ten-minute walk from Clapham Common. His killers had been roaming Clapham Common after a night of drinking. The judge, Brian Barker, said that the pair had gone to Clapham Common specifically to commit acts of "homophobic thuggery". Dobrowski crossed paths with the two men who automatically assumed he was gay, as Clapham Common is a well known cruising site for gay men.
Police say there was a short exchange of words before Pickford started to throw punches at Dobrowski. Walker then joined in the attack. One witness who intervened was warned off and told, "We don't like poofters here and that's why we can kill him if we want." They then continued their attack for an unknown length of time whilst, according to witnesses, continually throwing homophobic insults. The injuries that were left were so severe a pathologist was unable to identify how many times he had been hit but did identify 33 areas of injury to the head, face, ears and neck. Dobrowski had to be identified by fingerprints. A police officer who arrived at the scene of the crime described him as, "a bloody swollen pulp."[4] He was unconscious when found in the early hours of Saturday 15 October and died from his injuries later in hospital.
There was a lot of media attention on the attack due to its brutality, Dobrowski's sexuality, and this being considered a hate crime. Police eventually tracked down the murderers who were arrested one week after the crime[5] and eventually confessed on 12 May 2006. In January 2006, they denied committing the offence but later recanted.
Film Clapham Junction
[edit]In 2007, UK's Channel 4 released Clapham Junction, a TV drama partially based on the murder. The film, written by Kevin Elyot and directed by Adrian Shergold, was shown for the first time on 22 July 2007, on Channel 4, almost two years after the murder. It features David Leon as Alfie Cartwright, a gay man who is subjected to a beating on Clapham Common and dies of his injuries. It was screened to mark the 40th anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales, and highlighted violence against gays and hate crimes based on sexual orientation. It was shown a second time on More4 on 30 July 2007.[6]
See also
[edit]- Homophobia
- Violence against LGBT people
- Clapham Junction, the 2007 Channel 4 TV drama
References
[edit]- ^ Transcript of Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 Archived 10 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Latest victim of a homophobia that London had thought it had left behind Archived 23 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine, timesonline.co.uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ Jody's family calls for an end to homophobia Archived 7 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Pink News.co.uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ Men jailed for gay barman murder Archived 19 June 2006 at the Wayback Machine, bbc/co/uk; retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Latest victim of a homophobia that London thought it had left behind". The Times. Archived from the original on 23 May 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ^ "Channel 4 drama has echoes of Jodi's murder". Pink Paper. 15 June 2007. Archived from the original on 28 August 2012.
External links
[edit]- Murder on the common – The Times
- Men jailed for gay barman murder – BBC
- Dobrowski's family release a joint statement – PinkNews.co.uk
- Deaths by person in London
- 2005 in London
- LGBTQ history in England
- 2005 murders in the United Kingdom
- 2005 in LGBTQ history
- 2000s murders in London
- Clapham
- LGBTQ history in the United Kingdom
- Murder in London
- Violence against LGBTQ people in the United Kingdom
- Deaths by beating in the United Kingdom
- Gay history
- 21st century in the London Borough of Lambeth
- October 2005 events in the United Kingdom
- Violence against gay men
- Violence against men in the United Kingdom