Man Allegedly Strangles Boyfriend to Death at L.A. Sober Living Home

A man has been arrested on suspicion of strangling and killing his boyfriend in a sober living home in Echo Park, a neighborhood in central Los Angeles.

Nicholas James Bowling, aka Nick Bowling, 28, is being held on $2 million bail in connection with the murder of his on-again-off-again boyfriend, 48-year-old Frank Rogers.

Bowling, who lost both legs in 2012 after he crashed an LAPD car he had stolen into a light pole, a parked car and a Starbucks on South La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles, is being held at the Los Angeles’ Inmate Reception Center and a hearing is set for Tuesday.

Frank Rogers/Facebook

A friend of the victim told KTLA 5 News that Rogers was a “loving, gentle and kind soul” who will be “missed by the entire community.”  LAPD’s Northeast division are still investigating the case, but “from a distance, it’s death by way of a domestic dispute.”

The Pride Los Angeles reported that “an enraged Bowling is said to have overpowered Rogers and locked him into what police describe as a ‘choke-hold’ that he held until Rogers was lifeless.” Bowling had “struggled for several years with substance abuse,” and Rogers, a “highly regarded member of Los Angeles’ recovery community,” was known to be a “generous mentor and supporter of Bowling.”

Bowling is no stranger to the generosity of friends.

After he stole and crashed the LAPD car which resulted in the loss of his legs, friends rallied in support of his recovery. A GoFundMe page was set up in his name to help with his “mounting medical expenses and extensive physical rehabilitation”  and “blew right past” its initial goal of $5,000, according to organizer Ehren Bragg.

Friends also organized A Sunday Funday Event to Support Nick Bowling, a benefit at the now-defunct Eleven Nightclub in West Hollywood which raised over $9,000. The club donated 20 percent of food sales towards the benefit.

Watch the full report from KTLA 5 News:

Photo credit: Nick Bowling Fund/GoFundMe 

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#AM_Equality Tip Sheet: July 12, 2016

SHAME: ON ANNIVERSARY OF ORLANDO TRAGEDY, HOUSE REPUBLICANS HELD HEARING ON ANTI-LGBTQ BILL: Today, on the one-month anniversary of the horrific attack in  Orlando, House Republican leaders held a committee hearing on a deeply discriminatory anti-LGBTQ bill. The so-called “First Amendment Defense Act” (FADA) — endorsed by Donald Trump — would sanction unprecedented taxpayer-funded discrimination against LGBTQ people. “Members of Congress should hang their heads in shame for attempting to advance this reckless and irresponsible bill that embraces taxpayer-funded discrimination against LGBTQ people,” said HRC Senior Vice President of Policy and Political Affairs JoDee Winterhof.

• The White House didn’t mince words when slamming the hearing. Spokesperson Jeff Tiller told The Washington Blade that the hearing is “disturbing” and he reaffirmed President Obama’s commitment to “promoting and defending the equal rights of all Americans, including the rights of LGBT Americans.”

#BENCHHB2: AS NBA NEARS DECISION ON ALL-STAR GAME, LEADERS URGE THEM TO STAND STRONG: Tech industry leaders in a letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver are urging the league to move its 2017 All Star Game out of Charlotte unless North Carolina legislators repeal the discriminatory HB2 law “in very short order,” the Associated Press is reporting. The letter, signed by leaders including those from SV Angel, Google, Reddit, Paypal, Lyft, and Pinterest, asserts that, “If the NBA holds events in North Carolina while HB2 remains law, players, employees, and fans will be at risk of discrimination — and that’s wrong.” Silver is huddling this week in Las Vegas with team owners, and is holding a press conference tonight at 8 p.m. EDT. Speculation is he may announce a decision on the game’s location, which the NBA had said would come sometime this summer. Silver has warned repeatedly that the NBA would move the high-profile game if lawmakers fail to roll back HB2’s vile anti-LGBTQ provisions. Read more here.

RNC CONSIDERS ANTI-LGBTQ PROVISIONS FOR PARTY PLATFORM: Yesterday, the Republican Party’s policy subcommittee proposed a slew of anti-LGBTQ provisions for the GOP platform, including: supporting anti-transgender discrimination, calling for a Constitutional amendment undermining marriage equality, and embracing the discredited practice of “conversion therapy.” The proposals to undermine marriage equality and attack transgender people align with anti-LGBTQ stances taken by the party’s presumptive presidential nominee, Donald Trump. HRC urged the RNC and Trump campaign to strike the anti-LGBTQ provisions, and called on sponsors and convention affiliates to make clear their opposition to the proposals. More from HRC.

• HRC’s Senior Vice President JoDee Winterhof on the platform:“The Republican Party’s message is clear: Their proposed platform says LGBTQ people are second-class citizens, and that we are not equal or worthy of basic fairness or dignity. This is a shameful and repugnant message for the Republican Party to send, particularly as the nation prepares to mark the one month anniversary of the tragedy in Orlando.”
• “With friends like these”: Salon breaks down the Trumpster’s VP picks and allies, and says a Trump presidency could be worse for LGBTQ people than Reagan’s.
• Despite Republicans’ overwhelming support (64 percent) for the Equality Act, which would provide federal non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people nationwide, it’s not mentioned in the party platform. Shocker!

MISS. GOV. BRYANT STILL TRYING TO FORCE IMPLEMENTATION OF H.B. 1523: Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant has asked the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to stay a federal judge’s ruling blocking the implementation of the state’s discriminatory H.B. 1523. For this latest discriminatory move, Bryant enlisted notorious anti-LGBTQ legal group, the Alliance Defending Freedom, along with the  general counsel for the office of the governor and a smaller Missouri-based law firm. This follows Bryant’s unsuccessful bid to have U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves reconsider his block on the implementation of the law.

WILL AUSTRALIAN MPs FINALLY GET A VOTE?: Australia’s recent federal election has raised concerns about the country’s path to marriage equality. With a strong majority of Members of Parliament favoring marriage rights for same-sex couples, advocates are hoping Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s will finally allow members to simply vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on the issue. Turnbull has been promising a nationwide vote on marriage, which LGBTQ advocates have argued is expensive, contentious and non-binding. More from HRC.

• Australian officials announced on Monday that AIDS is “not a public health issue in the country anymore,” with so few people dying from AIDS that it’s become insignificant to report. This success comes from medical advances and public awareness campaigns. More from Mic.

ANTI-LGBTQ VIOLENCE ESCALATING IN BRAZIL: Leading up to the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympic Games, HRC Global’s Saurav Jung Thapa takes a look at the troubling escalation of brutal anti-LGBTQ violence in the South American country. Read the full op-ed at The Advocate.

ICYMI, STIRRING READ: Imagine being told that you cannot take your child home with you from the hospital on the day they were born because of your sexual orientation. That is what one couple was forced to endure because of a lone judge’s hateful interpretation of the law. Read the full heartbreaking story at Independent Journal Review.

READING RAINBOW

The Associated Press reports that a LGBTQ-supportive pastor has been detained in Russia and ordered to leave the country; Pink News chronicles potential British Prime Minister Theresa May’s evolution on LGBTQ equality; Independent.ie breaks down a new Irish report that says half of LGBTQ survivors of sexual assault wait more than ten years to report the crime; Bustle asks for your support in helping the oldest LGBTQ bookstore in the world to stay in business; LGBTQ Nation shares that France is ending it’s ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood — if they abstain from same-sex intercourse for a year; The Washington Blade talks to LGBTQ Puetro Ricans who continue to honor the victimes of the Orlando tragedy; and Local 4 Detroit examines a new Detroit Police Department team dedicated to investigating LGBTQ hate crimes.

Have news? Send us your news and tips at [email protected]. Click here to subscribe to A.M. Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!

www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tip-sheet-july-12-2016?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Meet the First Out UFC Champion, Amanda Nunes (Video)

www.advocate.com/sports/2016/7/12/meet-first-out-ufc-champion-amanda-nunes-video

House Considers Anti-LGBT Right to Discriminate on Anniversary of Orlando (Video)

Democrats denounced the bill as “shameful,” while Republicans and right-wing activists on the congressional panel claimed that the First Amendment Defense Act is necessary to protect the beliefs of those offended by marriage equality. 

www.advocate.com/politics/2016/7/12/house-considers-anti-lgbt-right-discriminate-anniversary-orlando-video

One Month After Pulse, 10 Activists Arrested at Rubio Sit-In

The organizers staged a sit-in outside of Sen. Marco Rubio’s office in Orlando, chanting “No Justice, No Peace!”

www.advocate.com/2016/7/12/one-month-after-pulse-10-activists-arrested-protesting-gun-control-inaction

President Obama Speaks at Memorial Service for Slain Dallas Officers: WATCH LIVE

President Obama on Tuesday is traveling to Dallas to speak an interfaith memorial service for the 5 police officers who were killed last Thursday in a targeted attack on law enforcement.

Watch live, below.

The post President Obama Speaks at Memorial Service for Slain Dallas Officers: WATCH LIVE appeared first on Towleroad.

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Emotional ‘Hands’ Lyrics Video Released on One Month Anniversary of Orlando Massacre – WATCH

An emotional lyric video has been released for the Orlando tribute song “Hands” that features YouTube stars who traveled to Orlando in the wake of the Pulse massacre and also some of the survivors of that shooting that left 49 people dead.

The video was released on Tuesday to coincide with the one month anniversary of the massacre.

One of the survivors featured in the video, 20 year-old Patience Carter, became known for the heartrending poem she wrote about the massacre as she was recovering in hospital.

RELATED: Orlando Survivor Shares Her Story in Harrowing Poem: ‘The Guilt of Being Alive Is Heavy’ – WATCH

As previously reported, “Hands” was released by Interscope Records in partnership with GLAAD.

A host of music stars lent their voices to the song, including Mary J Blige, Jason Derulo, Tyler Glenn, Selena Gomez, Halsey, Ty Herndon, Imagine Dragons, Juanes, Adam Lambert, Mary Lambert, Jennifer Lopez, the Trans Chorus of Los Angeles, Kacey Musgraves, MNEK, Alex Newell, P!nk, Prince Royce, Nate Ruess, RuPaul, Troye Sivan, Jussie Smollett, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, and Meghan Trainor. The song was written by Justin Tranter, Julia Michaels, and BloodPop and produced by BloodPop, Mark Ronson, and Justin Tranter.

All proceeds from the US sales of the track will benefit Equality Florida Pulse Victims Fund, the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida, and GLAAD.

You can purchase the song on iTunes.

GLAAD is also calling on people to accelerate acceptance and end hate by signing a petition which you can see HERE.

Watch the video for “Hands” and see the list of YouTube stars who joined in the tribute, below.

Here’s the list of YouTubers that appear in the video:

• Connor Franta
• Mitch Grassi
• Toby Randall
• Lucas Cruikshank
• Pablo Vlogs
• Missesmae
• Nina and Randa
• Kingsley
• Skylar Kergil
• Nicola Foti
• PatrickStarrr
• Sam Tsui
• Trevor Moran
• Rebecca Black
• Gigi Gorgeous
• Jack Merridew
• Mariale Marrero
• Raymond Braun
• Lia Marie Johnson
• Us The Duo
• Trans Chorus of L.A.
• Luan Palomera
• Austin and Aaron Rhodes
• Zuri Hall
• Michael Buckley
• Amymaire Gaertner
• Manny Mua
• Jake Roper
• Bradlee Wannemacher
• Travis Bryant
• Scott Hoying

The post Emotional ‘Hands’ Lyrics Video Released on One Month Anniversary of Orlando Massacre – WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

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