Prompted by coverage in The Washington Times, the Dirkhising case gained notoriety as conservative commentators compared media coverage of the two cases and explored the issues of what was considered a hate crime.
The Shepard murder was approaching its first anniversary and was getting another round of national attention, coupled with updates on pending hate crime legislation. Further details revealed in the court case depicted a gruesome death.ĭirkhising's death received only regional media coverage until a Washington Times article ran a story nearly a month after his death, noting the lack of national coverage in contrast to that given to the 1998 death of Matthew Shepard. Considering how he was a minor and the men were adults, this was considered unlikely. ĭespite his being at their home with approval from his parents, the defense argued he was complicit in the sexual acts, and therefore the death was accidental. He died from drugging and positional asphyxia during the ordeal.
He was staying with two men (with his parents’ permission) who bound, drugged, tortured, and repeatedly raped him. Jesse William Dirkhising (– September 26, 1999), also known as Jesse Yates, was an American teenager from Prairie Grove, Arkansas.
