ATLANTA — A man remains in jail after pouring boiled water on two gay men inside an apartment in suburban Atlanta.
In February, Martin Blackwell, 48, was arrested for two counts of aggravated assault when he poured boiling hot water on Marquez Tolbert, 21, and his boyfriend Anthony Gooden Jr., 23.
The couple was jolted out of sleep by the feeling of boiling water splashing across their torsos, faces and limbs. Blackwell, who was at the time dating Gooden’s mother, was standing over them.
According to Tolbert, Blackwell allegedly yanked him off the mattress and yelled, “Get out of my house with all that gay.” A police report said Blackwell was disgusted by the couple.
Blackwell is currently being held without bail.
The case recently gained attention when both Tolbert’s and Gooden’s families set up GoFundMe accounts. A friend of the Tolbert family’s GoFundMe campaign, aimed at raising funds to help with medical bills, has already gathered over its initial goal of $40,000. Gooden’s family recently set up a page this week. The account has gained almost $23,000 of its $30,000 campaign goal.
Georgia currently has no hate crime statute since the supreme court struck down the law in 2004.
