Sunday's shooting of Clinton “Billy”
Lewis, a gay man, wasn't motivated by hate, police in Elmira, New
York say, the Elmira Star-Gazette reported.
Twenty-year-old Louis M. Duffy of
Horseheads, a town that borders Elmira, was arrested on Sunday in
connection with Lewis' early Sunday morning death.
Police say Duffy has confessed to
shooting Lewis in the head inside Lewis' apartment, which is located
across the street from Club Chill, a gay bar and club he owned and
operated. Duffy has been arraigned on a charge of second-degree
murder and is expected to return to court on Tuesday morning.
Mourners created an impromptu memorial
out of flowers, balloons and candles outside the bar.
While not divulging the motivation
behind the killing, police insisted Lewis, 53, was not killed because
he was gay.
“I really can't disclose the actual
motive, but I will say it was a personal issue,” said Captain
Joseph Kain of the Elmira Police Department. “The victim was not
killed as a direct result of being gay, it does not appear to be a
hate crime.”
Investigators said there was no
evidence of a break-in and that the two men were acquaintances.
Police responded to a 4AM report of a
gunshot victim called in by Lewis' roommate. Lewis, who helped
organize local gay pride events in the past, was pronounced dead at
the Arnot Ogden Medical Center a short time later.