SEATTLE: Gay Man Dies Two Weeks After Possible Hate Crime Bashing

Seattle hair salon owner Danny Vega has died after two weeks in a coma that resulted from a brutal street attack by several men. Vega's family believes the assault was a hate crime, although the police are not investigating it as such.

On Nov. 15, Vega, a prominent figure in the city's Filipino American community, was taking an evening walk nearby in Seattle's Rainier Valley neighborhood when three teens attacked him from behind, said police. They beat Vega unconscious and took his cell phone and keys. Vega was hospitalized with severe injuries to his kidneys, liver and brain. He fell into a coma and was later put on life-support. James Saarenas, who along with some international students lived in Vega's house, said they were not just praying for peace, but for justice. "The prayers and vigil will continue while those three people have not been caught," Saarenas said. "We just want to make sure that this will not happen to anybody else."