Assault on Marine defending gay friends to be investigated as hate crime

The beating of a 22-year-old straight Marine in Omaha, Nebraska is being investigated as a hate crime after he was allegedly punched in the face for peacefully defending his two gay friends, one of whom was dressed in drag.

Following a drag show on the night of October 26, Marine Ryan Langenegger and his friends, Joshua Foo and Jacob Gellinger, went to a restaurant where they received stares and were harassed. After deciding to leave, three men followed them and made derogatory remarks.

Langenegger was reportedly punched in the face after telling the men that he and his friends did not want a conflict. As a result, he suffered "a gash on his forehead, a bruised eye, a bloody nose and two chipped teeth."