LGBTQ+ advocates are calling for accountability after a neighbor dispute ended with a Jacksonville man shot in the back and left partially paralyzed just steps from his home, according to Times-Union news partner First Coast News.
Supporters say 24-year-old Kyle McFarlane, who lives on Green Street in the Murray Hill neighborhood, was nearly killed in a shooting on Nov. 22.
According to a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office arrest report, McFarlane told police he was collecting discarded furniture near his house for a bonfire when his neighbors came outside and yelled at him to get off their property.
Detectives say a verbal argument followed. Investigators say the female neighbor walked toward McFarlane holding a belt, and moments later her boyfriend, identified by police as 30-year-old Tyler Getchell, fired a single round that hit McFarlane in the back.
A bullet remains lodged in Kyle McFarlane’s spine, partially paralyzing him following a Nov. 22 shooting by his Jacksonville neighbor.
A police report states that video provided to officers shows McFarlane standing on the easement, not on his neighbors’ property, during the confrontation.
McFarlane is now partially paralyzed and faces a long recovery, including intensive medical care and rehabilitation, advocates say. They also say he cannot work for the foreseeable future. A GoFundMe has since been created.
Anti-gay history with neighbors
Court records and McFarlane’s supporters point to what they describe as earlier incidents between the neighbors, including signs with anti-LGBTQ+ language posted facing McFarlane’s home and feces smeared on his walls.
Echo Nova, an LGBTQ+ advocate, said the shooting capped what they view as a pattern of targeted hostility.
“This is an escalation of a series of hate attacks on Kyle and his home,” Nova said. “When you attack one of us, you attack all of us.”
Nova and other advocates are urging prosecutors to take a closer look at the case and consider additional charges. They argue the circumstances should be examined as a possible hate-motivated crime.
Kyle McFarlane hugs his dog, Pickles. He was shot in the back and partially paralyzed during a confrontation with Jacksonville neighbors on Nov. 22.
“This is quite a blatant hate crime itself,” Nova said. “There is no reason to be hateful toward people, no matter their sexuality, their gender, their religious denomination, their nationality, their economic standing. There’s no need for hate, and there’s no need to act on that hate in such violent measures either. The community is here standing with Kyle.”
Getchell is charged with attempted murder and is in the Duval County jail without bail. His girlfriend has not been charged at this time.
First Coast News has reached out to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to ask whether investigators are treating the incident as a potential hate crime.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: LGBTQ supporters of Jacksonville shooting victim call for hate crime