Four men accused of attacking a gay couple after a Miami Beach pride parade back in 2018 have avoided prison time under a plea deal.
Juan Carlos Lopez, Luis Alonso, Adonis Diaz and Pablo Figueroa were accused of beating a gay couple and calling them anti-gay slurs after the Pride Parade on South Beach.
The four had been facing hefty prison sentences after they were charges with aggravated battery with enhanced hate crime charges.
But under Monday's plea deal, the charges were changed to battery with prejudice, a second-degree felony.
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All four received five years of probation, 200 hours of community service, and have to complete an anger management course.
They also had to apologize in court Monday as part of the deal.
"This is not me, I wish we acted a different way and Iām sure it's not going to happen again," Alonso said during his apology. "I offer my sincere apologies."
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Part of the incident was captured on surveillance camera. The victims said there was an accidental bump as they were coming out of the restrooms on South Beach. The situation devolved into the attack, with the four men punching and beating the couple.
Earlier this year, the defendants had sought to have the case dismissed under Florida's so-called "Stand Your Ground" law, saying they were defending themselves, but a judge denied their claim.
"As a community, we must always come together to address issues of violence, especially when it is rooted in prejudice and hate," Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement Monday. "I am glad that today we are able to give these victims the justice they justly deserve and some measure of closure so that healing may begin."
