Edhat Staff
By the edhat staff
Santa Barbara County District Attorney has charged two men in the Santa Ynez Valley for stealing and burning LGBTQ pride flags and sharing it on social media last summer.
Avi Stone Williams, 18, and Joshua Jerome Eligino, 19, have each been charged with two misdemeanor counts of petty theft and one misdemeanor count of a violation of Civil Rights.
According to the District Attorney’s complaint, the Civil Rights violation is described as the suspects unlawfully and knowingly defacing, damaging, and destroying personal property “for the purpose of intimidating and interfering with the free exercise and enjoyment of a right and privilege secured by the Constitution and laws of California and the Constitution and laws of the United States because of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender, and sexual orientation and because the defendant perceived that the victim had such characteristics.”
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office released details of their investigation into two thefts of Pride Flags in the Los Olivos area. On July 28, 2022, deputies responded to St. Mark’s in the Valley Episcopal Church in Los Olivos to investigate a report of the theft of a pride flag.
Deputies spent several days investigating the report including collecting physical evidence, interviewing victims and witnesses, and tracking down a video of the burning of a pride flag.
As a result of their efforts, deputies identified two young adult suspects in the theft who admitted to an additional theft of a pride flag in the Ballard area at a private residence, as well as the burning of one of the flags in a video they shared on social media.
A violation of Civil Rights is considered a “hate crime” under California law.
“The Sheriff’s Office takes these offenses seriously and the case has been submitted to the District Attorney’s Office requesting charges for 488PC – Petty Theft and 422.6(b) PC – Hate Crimes,” the Sheriff’s Office press release stated in 2022.
“In accordance with the Victims’ Bill of Rights, the District Attorney’s Office has met with the victims and members of the community and received input on how they have been impacted by these events,” the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office states.
Williams and Eligino are set to be arraigned in Department 9 in the Santa Maria courthouse on April 19, 2023.
Related Articles
August 1, 2022: Sheriff’s Deputies Investigated Thefts and Burning of Pride Flags
According to Instagram Avi Stone Williams attends Pepperdine. I wonder what the university thinks of their student committing a hate crime. Here is his account where he shows off photos of himself lifting weights… cool bro: https://www.instagram.com/asw_lifts/
And Joshua’s account is private, slightly smarter than Avi: https://www.instagram.com/joshua_eligino/
Pepperdine was begot as an evangelical Christian school. The original campus on Vermont was known for the Sunday evening “holy roller” services in the chapel. I don’t think Pepperdine is likely to object to the off campus “frolics” of their paying students.
Where are all those “tough on crime” con commenters now? What do you think COAST, BASIC, VOICE, SBLOCAL, BABY? Should we just let these thieves go?
@ Sacjon, I won’t get my panties into a bunch like you over a flag burning… It was basically a non-crime during the 2020 RIOTS when American Flags were burned by the 1000’s.
These two misguided youths will be held accountable during the LGBT+ craze going on these days…
No hand wringing here.
Coast – “… by the 1,000s …” Delusional as usual.
COASTLIES – another lie. ALSO, I referred to them as thieves, not flag burners. Do you even read English?
” the LGBT+ craze going on these days” – yeah, because it’s just a fad, right? Like a fashion choice, huh? Idiot.
VOR–you’re so disingenuous it’s laughable.
Gay people are literally still harassed and physically attacked on the street for holding hands.
Are you seriously claiming that gay people are not subject to bigotry and hate?
Are you really?
Lol when Latino kids are tagging or getting in fights they’re hardcore gang members. But when two hicks do a hate crime they’re “misguided youths.” Throw the book at these idiots and teach them and others a lesson. Nobody ever talk about what happened to gay people in the South in the recent past. Too ugly and disgusting.
I think they’re total clowns. What should we do with them?
BASIC – we should prosecute and sentence them just you guys demand we do for all those juvenile criminals.
Geez automatically guilty. Let them go thru due process. Probably hypocrites .
Well… they are guilty because they admitted doing it all to the Sheriff’s Office. Did you read the article?
The folks who want to treat this as a property crime would also treat a KKK cross burning on a minority family’s lawn as an illegal bonfire.
Is there such a thing as a straight pride flag?
VOR–yep, that’s what I said. Which are you?
Nope, it’s pretty accurate.
Sacjon, you’d have to ignore a lot, and I mean a lot, of information, quotes and video clips to believe that. Beyond delusional and propagandize, that’s straight up alternate universe level.
MEBK – No, just red hats.
MEBK, no we don’t need that. We have always been considered the highest expression of human sexuality and the norm. Other people who have been shit on for all eternity, abused, oppressed, murdered, excluded, just because of their sexuality take some much needed solace in being able to say to the world that they too are proud of who they are.
I can see why that would threaten you. Not.
MEBK – do you really feel you need one? I bet you could find a straight male pride flag somewhere…… check the South or Idaho. I bet you want a white history month, too?
Tell you what. When us straight males become outcasts, executed by the masses, denied the right to marry and love who we want, denied basic human rights basically for a few hundred years….. THEN come back and ask for your straight pride flag.
@11:22a – Not all, but many. And if those who voted for Trump are not bigoted, racist, or homophobic, then it’s clearly not a dealbreaker for them to support a candidate and political party that are those things. No one is enjoying the descent of Red States as they stride closer to the Handmaid’s Tale, except for the bigots, racists, and homophobes.
Assuming that anyone who voted for Trump, (Red Hat) is a bigot , racist, or homophobe is so short sighted. Plenty of gays, people of color, women voted to save this country from the socialist directions in which we are now heading. Enjoy the descent.
Yes, MERK, you can see them at Nazi rallies.
VOICE – no. Biden isn’t a bigot, racist, misogynist, cheater, or ableist. It’s a lot different.
To say if you voted for Trump you’re either a horrible person or got suckered, then to go and vote for Biden and somehow think your different, you’re the sucker.
Say, szq, why did you post the same thing as yourself and anonymously? That defeats the purpose.
MERK -> MEBK (dust on my screen)
LOL 144.
If you support someone who uses racism and sexism and bigotry then you’re enabling those things.
Look, if you voted for Trump you’re either a horrible person or you got suckered. It’s one or the other.
I feel sort of bad for the people that got suckered, the others, well, I can’t wait to see them out rioting in the streets again when their cult leader is perp walked next week–ad of course he’s the one calling for death and destruction, yet again. How much blood does this guy really want on his hands?
So disappointing that these kids didn’t have the resources/pure enough hatred to buy their own pride flag to burn. They can burn all the flags they want, but by stealing they’re really tainting whatever point they’re trying to make.
It seems to me that crime and punishment today has less to do with the crime and more to do with who the criminal and the victim are. There is an increasingly popular trend to classify everyone and assign them a ranking of sorts based on how they are identified. Anyone who is assigned a low rank will face a stiff penalty for even the slightest offense against someone who is assigned a high rank. On the other hand, someone who is classified with a high rank can get away with a lot in committing offenses against someone with a low rank. A good rule of thumb to figure out where you fit into this ranking system compared to someone else is to consider a college admissions process. Assume you and the other person have identical academic qualifications and consider who would be given preference based on their identity. That person has the higher rank. It’s wise to be aware of how this system classifies you.
Chip – these two men stole and burned a symbolic object to instill fear and humiliation.
CHIP – so theft from LGBQT people is worse than theft from straight people?
The exact response I’d expect from a straight white male, thanks Chip.
Chip, do you understand what a hate crime is?
“Assume you and the other person have identical academic qualifications and consider who would be given preference based on their identity.”
Rich people, people with connections, etc.
LGBQT are “very high rank?” LOL where? What system are you using? Oh poor little bigots are being punished because they’re “very low rank.” Dude, you’re bigotry is showing and it stinks.
They stole and destroyed someone’s property, period. They did so out of bigotry and hate. Ergo, this is a “bigger deal” than a normal petty theft. Racism, homophobia, all those things are HEINOUS and should be shamed in public accordingly. It’s not about ranking, it’s about being a compassionate human. You’re not one.
Sac, I believe the punishment would be worse depending on who is involved. If the same two men committed a similar offense against a victim who was classified with a ranking similar to their own, it wouldn’t have been a big deal. Also, if two men who had a much higher ranking than these two individuals committed the same crime for the same reasons it wouldn’t have been a big deal. The reason for the severity of the punishment being sought in this instance is these two men are classified as a very low rank while the victims are classified with a very high rank.
So this is all involving “Pride Flags.” I have never understood how the word “pride” came to be co-opted to mean LGBTQ. Pride is defined as “a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements.” LGBTQ is a human state that just is what they were born with, not derived from any accomplishment. It is not something that they have accomplished any more that what “straight” people have accomplished by being born that way. Perhaps someone from the community can explain the logic about it, if there is any logic behind it.
10:46 – “It is not something that they have accomplished any more that what “straight” people have accomplished by being born that way.” – 1) They have accomplished equality (to some degree). I think that’s a pretty big accomplishment. 2) They don’t need to have “accomplished” anything. The “Pride” is the expression of being who they are without hiding in the shadows, risking beatings/murder/loss of employment, etc. That you can’t see why they should have pride in themselves is telling and sad.
Well, it was a serious and legitimate question from someone wanting to learn. Since the responses were simply being critical of the questioner apparently I should assume that you don’t have an answer.
“Gay Pride” is much like “Black is beautiful” … pushing back against a culture that holds being gay as something shameful and black as evil and unattractive. It’s not hard to understand by anyone who wants to.
@10:46am – this is something you could easily google and read up on. It’s not the LGBTQ+ community’s responsibility, or anyone else’s, to teach you. Take the initiative to learn more and be inclusive instead of posting anonymously on a comment thread riddled with homophobia because it seems like you’re adding to it.
“Well, it was a serious and legitimate question from someone wanting to learn.”
No it wasn’t … there wasn’t even a question mark. When people say “I’ve never understood X”, it’s a veiled to say “X is nonsense.”
11:41 – no, it wasn’t. “if there is any logic behind it.” – indicates bias. I answered your question with 2 points. That you say it was “simply being critical” and I “don’t have an answer,” indicates you’re not willing to learn at all. Stow the faux “willing to learn” bullpucky.
Another one who is completely full of it.
“Perhaps someone from the community can explain the logic about it, if there is any logic behind it.”
Yep, just another ignorant wanker.. People like you have been working to make gay people feel ashamed of who they are for a very long time. “Pride” is how they choose to mitigate that. Now you know.
BTW, if you have “a serious and legitimate question from someone wanting to learn”, why be anonymous?
*a veiled way to say*
So many homophobic and anti-LGBTQ comments. Really disappointing that people saying this stuff live in our community. Thanks Ed for deleting them.
So many self unaware bigots here. Sad.
COAST – LOL!!!!! You have “NEVER seen ANY discrimination or violence directed to anyone who was gay. In fact, just the opposite. 40 (FORTY) years ago, my Mom worked in the medical profession and most of her male co-workers were Gay.” – Are you gay? If not, your comment is absolutely meaningless and tone deaf.
“My mom worked with gay people, ergo there’s NEVER discrimination against LGBQT people.” Dude…… speechless, honestly.
“I’ve never even seen myself in the mirror” — CoastWatch
SZQ – hate to break the news to you, but there are plenty of gays, people of color and women who are racist, bigoted and homophobic.
“Today, in the United States, they can live just like everyone else.” – Uh…… have you ever read/heard/seen the news? What an incredibly tone deaf thing to say. Just when you couldn’t get any more wrong…… WOW. Not even going to dignify that with a list of incidents, laws, murders, hate crimes (you know, like THIS ONE YOU ARE COMMENTING ON), etc.
Winner of the Pinball Wizard Award (you might have to think a second on that one) goes to Voice of Fantasyland!
GT – ah so refreshing to see facts instead of lies!
” is there a group of people those same exact things aren’t happening to?” whoa whoops heyo watch out! Backpedaling at full speed is dangerous! LOL – way to try to dodge that one Neo!
LOL dude you are unreal.
Of course VOR doesn’t tell the whole story. He peppers his stories to fit his far right agenda. Please tell us what someone like Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump, Mike Pence, or Ted Cruz have done for gay rights? ZERO
2009: Obama signs the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act
December 2010: Obama signs a bill repealing ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
Obama instructs the Justice Department to stop defending DOMA in court, saying that he believes it is unconstitutional May 2012: Obama becomes the first president to support same-sex marriage Obama signs an executive order protecting LGBT employees working for government contractors December 2014: The Obama Administration interprets the Civil Rights Act as supportive of LGBT rights
You still aren’t using that word correctly. Regarding your comment about “have you seen the news”, is there a group of people those same exact things aren’t happening to? Is there ANY group immune to the hate and/or criminal acts of others?
Oh yeah, another thing…… no hate crimes or legislation against straight white people so there’s that…..
……sure plays a mean pinball!
6:49: straight white Christian people…
VOR. What have Trump ir Grenell done for gay rights? Richard Grenell, formerly the highest-ranking out gay official in the Trump administration, has joined a law firm founded by Pat Robertson that has a history of opposing LGBTQ+ rights.