NY Daily News On Stonewall Bashing

UPDATE: The families of the Stonewall attackers are rushing to their defense.

In an interview with The Daily News, Orlando's dad swore his 17-year-old boy was no bigot and wants to apologize "in person" to Carver. "We are a working class family," Don Orlando said outside his Staten Island home Tuesday. "We don't hate anyone here." What Orlando did was "wrong," his father added. "I'm not going to sugarcoat what happened," he said. "It was a bar fight, but I swear on my life it's not about Gays or race or any of that. We don't care about any of that stuff in this family." Had there been "an elephant" in the bathroom, "there probably would have been swings at the elephant," Don Orlando said.

The 57-year-old landscaper spoke out a day after his son and Francis, 21, who is also from Staten Island, were charged with assault as a hate crime and attempted robbery. It was not their first brush with the law. Orlando has a juvenile arrest for disorderly conduct. Francis has convictions for disorderly conduct, pot and weapons possession, but hasn't done any time in state prison, records show. "Why do people keep saying this is a hate crime?" Francis' girlfriend, Nancy Casabona, told The News. "Where's the hate? This is not a hate crime. He has a sister who is a lesbian." Francis' sister, Deanna Francis, who is indeed a lesbian, lashed out at Orlando's lawyer for suggesting Francis instigated the attack. "It takes two to tango," she said. "My brother isn't the only one at fault here. There is a lot more to this story."

Police report that the two attackers are blaming each other for the assault.