Gay teen in Sandy suffered brain injury in hate crime assault
Aug 2, 2022, 5:12 PM | Updated: 10:43 pm
SANDY, Utah — A gay teen is having trouble with memory loss after police say he was the victim of a hate crime.
Christian Peacock, 18, told KSL-TV he was punched in the face early Saturday morning after a group of guys yelled homophobic slurs at him and his boyfriend. Doctors later told him he suffered a brain injury as a result of that punch.
“The main thing that bothers me is my memory,” Peacock said. “I forgot Jacob was even my boyfriend. I forgot everything that we’d been doing together the past three months.”
KSL TV reported the crime over the weekend, which led to the arrest of a 17-year-old. That teen is now facing a charge of assault with a hate crime enhancement.
Peacock’s memory is slowly improving, he said.
The whole situation began when Peacock was on the street outside his home with his boyfriend.
“We were just hugging and saying goodbye for the night and just talking, just hugging and this car pulls up,” said Jacob Metcalf, Peacock’s boyfriend.
“They’re throwing out slurs and making fun of us,” Peacock said, “just for being together.”
The vehicle with five guys returned about 45 minutes later, which is when the homophobic slurs escalated into a physical attack.
Watch KSL at 10 p.m. to hear more from the couple about what they hope Utah learns from their experience.
