November 11, 1986: A killing in Calabasas, Calif.

Hate crimes committed against gay people show how intolerance for sexual diversity can lead to murder. Murkier, however, are stories of gay people who kill: How might larger antigay conditions shape their violence? In 1986, journalist Dan Siminoski wrote an in-depth Advocate article about Robert Rosenkrantz, a gay teenager who killed another boy who had exposed his homosexuality.

The basic facts were undisputed: Rosenkrantz, 18, and another boy had been at the family beach house when Rosenkrantz's younger brother and his friend Steve Redman burst in. The two taunted the young gay men and later told Rosenkrantz's father that they had caught the boys "with their pants down." A few days later, on June 28, 1985, Rosenkrantz waited for four hours outside Redman's house. When Redman appeared, he refused to take back his story, calling Rosenkrantz a "fucking faggot." Rosenkrantz then shot Rodman 10 times with an Uzi.

Rosenkrantz was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 17 years to life. He is currently incarcerated at a California state prison in San Luis Obispo, Calif.

In a letter to the judge at sentencing, Rosenkrantz wrote, "Steve could not deal with a hatred [of homosexuality] which all but consumed him.... My inability to deal with myself, to face up to the reality of my identity, and my failure to conduct myself in a rational way after the involuntary disclosure of my secret all combined to [cause his] death."

Find this 1986 Advocate cover story on Robert Rosenkrantz in its entirety by going to www.advocate.com