Two men were sentenced on Monday after pleading guilty to hate crime charges in their 2024 assault of a transgender clerk and her fiancé at a Western Massachusetts liquor store.

Attorneys for the defendants, Warren Martinez and Thomas Patnode, arrived at a plea deal with prosecutors just hours before jury selection in the men’s trial was set to start.

Related

3 friends allegedly called “fa***ts,” beaten & choked by mob. They’re facing charges.

“Martinez physically attacked both individuals with repeated punches, kicks, and the use of a pointed plastic bottle,” the DA’s office said. “Patnode assisted Martinez, brandishing a knife and threatening the two victims.”

Both victims were seriously injured in the attack.

Never Miss a Beat

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Subscribe to our Newsletter today

Martinez, 31, pleaded guilty to mayhem, two counts of assault and battery to intimidate based on gender identity and sexual orientation causing injury, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and breaking and entering a building in the nighttime, Boston.com reported. He was sentenced to 5 to 10 years in state prison.

Patnode, 25, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and battery to intimidate based on gender identity and sexual orientation causing injury and assault by means of a dangerous weapon. He received a sentence of 2.5 years in county jail and one year of probation concurrently.

In their guilty pleas, Martinez and Patnode acknowledged they assaulted the couple, both transgender, and used homophobic slurs after they were denied the purchase of alcohol four times at the store, according to the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office.

The victims said both men were intoxicated.

According to prosecutors, Martinez severely assaulted the clerk at around 11 p.m., breaking her mouth’s palate and leaving her unable to “eat, drink, or speak regularly.”

Both Patnode and Martinez called the victims a slur related to their queer identities repeatedly during the incident, prosecutors said.

In their final encounter with the attackers, the first victim said that, fearing for her life, she put a baseball bat over her shoulder and pushed the “panic button” to call the police.

At a hearing following the attackers’ arrests, prosecutors played video taken by a witness, who called 911 and was heard pleading for Martinez to “Stop!” during the beating, according to the Greenfield Recorder.

The video shows Martinez repeatedly punching the store clerk outside, smashing her in the head with a heavy plastic bottle.

At the same hearing, Martinez’s attorney said her client didn’t deny his role in the assault, but that he was “extremely intoxicated” during the incident and had no recollection of it the next morning. She claimed he cried with remorse as he watched the video of the assault.

Patnode was arrested in the days following the incident after he allegedly threatened a witness, leading to an additional intimidation charge.

“In court Monday, both victims described the significant impact of the physical assault on their lives,” the DA’s office said. “They spoke about the trauma caused by the attack.”

The couple said they haven’t felt safe in public since, and shared a strong desire to ensure that no one else experiences a similar attack.

Subscribe to the LGBTQ Nation newsletter and be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.