Twenty-seven-year-old Ian Cranston was arrested and charged with second-degree murder for the death of 22-year-old Barry Washington on Sept. 19 in Bend, Ore., according to KVTZ. The Oregon man allegedly did not like Washington flirting with his girlfriend at a bar.
Cranston was originally given bail and released, enraging the public. He was arrested again after being indicted by the grand jury and charged with first and second-degree manslaughter, first-degree assault, and unlawful weapon use.
Washington was reportedly at The Capitol bar on Sept. 19 when he complimented a white woman and asked her out. She reportedly declined, saying she had a boyfriend, and Washington acted accordingly. Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel described Washington’s responding “appropriately” after his advances were rejected.
However, later in the evening, Washington and one of Cranston’s friends became involved in a physical altercation outside the bar. Cranston responded by drawing his gun and shooting Washington.
Cranston’s girlfriend later gave a disturbing video to The Central Oregon Daily News that allegedly showed bystanders laughing and shouting racial slurs at Washington as he laid on the ground dying. Washington was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Hummel claimed that there was not enough evidence to charge Cranston with a hate crime but said they would amend the charges if more proof came to light. He added that if they presented it to the grand jury now and determined there was insufficient evidence, he would not be able to add the bias charge later.
The DA also noted the country’s long history of Black men being prosecuted or lynched for looking at or talking to a white woman.
“This isn’t a judgment on Barry,” he said. “We charged the highest crime there is for this act. It was an intentional act. That’s what our theory was. It wasn’t a fumbling with the gun or an accidental discharge of the gun. It was an intentional decision by Mr. Cranston to shoot and kill Barry Washington.”
Hummel also asked anyone with pertinent information about the incident to come forward. Cranston’s lawyer said his client would be pleading not guilty and claimed that Cranston was defending himself. The investigation is still underway, and the police are still collecting evidence.
Cranston will appear before the court on Oct. 5.
