Three people accused of taking part in
the beating of a gay male couple in Philadelphia surrendered to
police on Wednesday.
Phillip Williams and Kathryn Knott,
both 24, and Kevin Harrigan, 26, are charged with criminal conspiracy
and two counts each of aggravated assault, simple assault and
reckless endangerment.
The victims told police that they were
rushed by a mob of 10 to 12 men and women after one asked them if
they were together. As a result of the beating, one of the victims,
28, was hospitalized for more than three days and had to have his jaw
wired shut.
A lawyer representing Knott, the
daughter of Chalfont Township Police Chief Karl Knott, denied her
participation in the incident.
During an appearance on Talk
Radio 1210 WPHT, Louis Busico said his client “didn't do this.”
“This is a woman who grew up in a law
enforcement environment, in a law enforcement home. She has the
utmost respect for the law. She is a gentle, kind person who was
never in trouble before. She has zero animus to anybody, let alone
somebody of a particular group or persuasion. This young woman, on
her best day, couldn’t bust a grape. She hurt no one. She struck
no one. Simply stated, she didn’t do this,” he said.
A trail of messages on Twitter compiled
by Scott
Wooledge, however, paints a slightly less rosy picture of Knott.
“A guy ran me off the road, called my
dad ran his license and got him ticket #sorrynotsorry #lovemydad,”
she wrote in 2012.
“the ppl we were just dancing with
just turned and [made] out with each other #gay #ew,” she said in
another message from the same year.
Fortunato Perri, who represents
Williams, also defended his client, saying he “was not the
aggressor.”
“In no way, shape or form was this
incident related to anyone's sexual orientation,” Perri was quoted
as saying by the AP. “This was a mutual confrontation that started
because two individuals got into an argument out in the street.”