14 The QUEE NS Courier • FEBRUARY 21, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Husband, friends mourn Lou Rispoli SUSPECTS SOUGHT IN OCTOBER KILLING BY MAT SURUSCO Lou Rispoli would have turned 63 on February 1. His widowed husband, Danyal Lawson, grieved that day for his slain spouse, but he wasn’t alone. Lawson, of Woodside, found comfort in a bittersweet dinner with friends and by visiting the couple’s favorite flower shop, Nunziato’s Florist, where he picked out two orchids. “I always got Lou green orchids,” said Lawson, 60. Since losing his partner of 32 years, Lawson said the community and a “huge family of friends” have helped him cope by offering food and emotional support. Hundreds attended a November vigil and march, and some – including City Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer, a friend of the couple – recently handed out police sketches of two of the three suspects wanted for the October killing. “Everybody remembered Lou,” Lawson said. “When you live in a neighborhood for 30 years, it’s not an anonymous thing.” Rispoli, who was attacked October 20 in Sunnyside, died at Elmhurst Hospital Center five days later. Rispoli, Lawson and friends had long planned to dine at a beloved neighborhood restaurant to mark Rispoli’s shared birthday with two friends turning 21 – twin sisters who were once Lawson’s piano students. About 20 people – gay and straight, young and old – joined Lawson on February 1 for dinner at La Flor restaurant in Woodside. La Flor’s chef and owner Viko Ortega, of Maspeth, said he met Lawson and Rispoli about 12 years ago when he opened the restaurant. He catered their August 2011 wedding reception, a few weeks after they were married on the first day it was legal in New York State. In the days after Rispoli died, Ortega provided food to Lawson and his friends, who were staying together while they grieved. “I’m sure he Rispoli would’ve done the same thing,” Ortega said. Sketches of two of the three suspects wanted in the murder. For the November vigil, brothers Michael and John Gioia, who own Nunziato’s, donated single white carnations for marchers to carry. They also put together a heart-shaped floral arrangement with a “For Peace, For Justice, For Lou” ribbon that was placed near the corner of 41st Street and 43rd Avenue, where Rispoli was attacked. Lawson said people have asked him if he plans to move. “Where would I go? This is my home,” he said. “I still love this neighborhood. Photo Courtesy NYPD “That circle of friends was our family that we made together,” he added. “And it’s an amazing family. It really is.” Lawson said bringing the suspects to justice is not about vengeance. “It’s about closure,” he said. “I just hope that they catch these people.” Highlight online dating dangers after murders of two gay men BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA [email protected] Two similar murders of gay men within the last few weeks have highlighted the dangers of online dating, particularly in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Councilmember Daniel Dromm, the New York Anti-Violence Project and other community leaders are now stressing safety to make sure that people get to know someone a little bit better before inviting them home, especially if they meet on the Internet. “Online, things might appear better than they really are,” said Dromm. “But you don’t really know someone until you meet in person.” According to police and published reports, a recent murder victim, David Rangel, a 53-year-old public school teacher who was found strangled under the couch of his Jackson Heights home on January 27, may have met his killer online. On February 9, Joseph Benzinger, a 54-year-old gay man from Middle Village, was found dead lying on the floor of an Elmhurst hotel, also strangled, with a shirt wrapped around his neck. Last week, Benzinger’s alleged killer, a 23-year-old Manhattan man, Lleuyel Garcia, was arrested and charged with robbery in addition to murder. Authorities believe that Benzinger and Garcia may have had a prior sexual relationship, but it wasn’t clear if they met online. In both cases there were no signs of forced entry. Though police don’t believe that the two murders are connected, their circumstances are enough to cause concern for some. “These recent tragic incidents show us that this is the time for our community to join together to recognize that we not only deserve safety, but that we can create it,” said Ejeris Dixon, deputy director in charge of community organizing and public advocacy at the New York City Anti-Violence Project. According to Dromm, the Anti-Violence project has seen an uptick in LGBT dating violence. “A lot of it comes from having hooked up with people online,” he said. With the uptick in mind, Dromm felt it was important to make the LGBT community, as well as others, aware of online dating risks and how they can minimize them. If you do decide to meet up with someone you were introduced to online, said Dromm, meet in a public place. “Go to your favorite café and make sure the waiter sees who you are with. If you meet someone in a bar, let the bartender know who the person is,” he said. “Go to your favorite café and make sure the waiter sees who you are with. “Nobody is ever 100 percent safe,” said Dromm. “But these tips can discourage somebody from taking advantage of another person.” Photo courtesy of Councilmember Daniel Dromm’s Office Coucilmember Daniel Dromm, the New York Anti-Violence Project and other community leaders stress dating safety in the LGBT community at the Elmhurst hotel where a gay man was murdered. (Insert) David Rangel, who was strangled to death in his Jackson Heights apartment last month, may have met his murderer online. Photo courtesy of Facebook
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