Noted LGBT Rights Advocates Lead Austin Police Training

AUSTIN, TX — The parents of a gay man whose death sparked a movement against hate crimes hosted an Austin police training session on Wednesday, officials said.

Judy and Dennis Shepard, parents of Matthew Shepard, hosted the Matthew Shepard Foundation, Hate Crimes Training at the Austin Police Department Training Academy, officials said. Matthew Shepard was a 21-year-old Wyoming student who was brutally attacked in 1998 before succumbing to his wounds while hospitalized in Fort Collins, Colorado.

In the years following her son's death, his mother has worked as an advocate for LGBT rights, particularly on behalf of gay youth. She and her husband founded the foundation bearing their son's name in 1998, the same year of their son's murder.

The training session hosted by the Shepards was scheduled during the police training from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the police academy at 4800 Shaw Lane. Among the program topics:

• The importance of developing strong ties between law enforcement and vulnerable communities
• The appropriate investigative measures that should be taken when a hate crime is reported
• The state and federal law pertaining to hate crimes
• Negative consequences for a prosecution absent such cooperation
• The key investigative steps necessary to obtain the critical motive evidence

Police listed some training takeaways include:

• Gain a greater understanding of the need for effective and prompt hate crime enforcement as a means to strengthen trust between officers and the community
• Be proficient in recognizing and identifying bias indicators when responding to a hate crime and enhancing the skills necessary to engage with the victim in a sensitive and respectful manner
• Possess an enhanced ability to determine what facts are necessary to substantiate the criminal charge and the bias motivation, how prosecutors and police can work together effectively to obtain a conviction, and how to accurately report data

The Matthew Shepard Foundation’s longstanding mission is to erase hate by replacing it with understanding, compassion and acceptance, officials described. Learn more about the Matthew Shepard Foundation and Matthew’s story here: https://www.matthewshepard.org/about-us/.

The sensitivity training comes at a time of enhanced scrutiny for the police academy following the forced retirement of a former assistant police chief who was accused of having used racial slurs and misogynistic insults for years without repercussion. The officer, Justin Newsom, later publicly apologized for his behavior while acknowledging his use of racially charged pejoratives.

The incident has cast an unwelcome light on the Austin police academy as a whole, with the city manager and Austin City Council members both launching investigations into the culture at the academy that may have enabled Newsom to continue his unprofessional conduct with impunity.