30 Years Ago

By Jen Colletta
PGN Staff Writer
© 2008 Philadelphia Gay News

New Jersey repeals sodomy law

On Aug. 10, 1978, New Jersey became the 21st state to decriminalize sodomy. Then-Gov. Brendan Byrne signed the new criminal code into law, from which the state legislature had struck sodomy in June, at the state Assembly Chamber.

“The emphasis on the new crimes code is more on the certainty of punishment for people who commit crimes of robbery and assault,” said Joseph Santangelo, the state’s director of information.

About 200 judges, prosecutors and probation officers attended the signing-in ceremony. Outside the building, a handful of antigay demonstrators protested the repeal of the sodomy law, holding signs that read, “We Are Outraged” and “God Bless Anita Bryant — God Help Brendan Byrne.”

Former New Jersey Sen. Joseph Maressa introduced a bill to reincorporate sodomy into the state’s criminal code in October, but withdrew the measure in 1979 because of a lack of public support.

Man dead after S&M tryst

Neal Ellis, a 49-year-old accountant who frequented bars in the Gayborhood, was found dead in his apartment at 20th and Chestnut streets Aug. 10. Ellis’ cleaning woman discovered his body in his ransacked, blood-splattered bedroom around noon that day. Ellis’ ankles were tied together with a belt, and there was a “bloody sexual instrument” found near the chair in which he was sitting upright. Furniture in the bedroom was overturned and police said a stereo and television were missing from the room.

An autopsy performed on Ellis said the cause of death was a “diseased heart,” but Joseph Murray, chief of homicide for the Philadelphia Police Department, said the death was being investigated as “suspicious.”

Jack Friel, owner of Hasty Tasty Deli, said that most regulars at Gayborhood nightspots knew Ellis as “Clayton,” a name he used only when out at gay bars. Friel surmised that Ellis’ death was the result of a sexual act gone wrong.

“There’s no question Neal was into S&M,” Friel said. “He obviously got into a scene with somebody. It got too heavy and he had a heart attack.”

Ozzie Schwartz, former owner of The Post, a now-defunct gay bar, said Ellis was a regular at his establishment and agreed with Friel’s speculations.

“I’ve known him for years,” Schwartz said. “Neal was never very particular about who he went home with.”

Councilman frank on ‘faggots’

Former City Councilman Francis Rafferty did little to defend his homophobic stance on the LGBT community when questioned by a PGN reporter Aug. 7.

When asked why he repeatedly referred to his political enemies as “faggots,” Rafferty responded, “Why would it be offensive to anyone? Things you gays say may offend people. Everyone goes around talking like a broad. Why don’t you dress like a man instead of a woman?”

After the reporter commented that Rafferty’s use of the word “faggot” was “disgusting,” Rafferty countered, “What’s more disgusting than you walking around acting like a gal?”

Rafferty gained notoriety the following year for punching former mayor and then-City Councilmember John Street after a heated debate during a City Council meeting. When Street was elected mayor, he hired Rafferty’s son as a bodyguard.

—Jen Colletta

Jen Colletta can be reached at jen@epgn.com.