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Trevor Chandler said he was canvassing for votes in the Mission District when the man attacked.
An out gay man said he was the victim of a frightening homophobic assault while campaigning for a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
Trevor Chandler said he was about to canvass a street in his Mission District neighborhood on Sunday, July 23, when a man started yelling homophobic slurs at him.
He said he crossed the street to avoid a confrontation, but the man followed Chandler. The man then lifted what prosecutors described as a “four-foot A-frame sign” and hurled it at him.
It was at this point Chandler understood the seriousness of the situation.
“I realized it was more than just some random one-off situation,” Chandler told local NBC affiliate KNTV. “It was something much more serious and scary.”
Chandler used his cell phone to call the police while the man followed him. He was able to seek safety in the apartment of strangers. The man fled the scene on foot but returned while police were taking Chandler’s statement. He was immediately detained by the police.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins on Thursday identified the man as Jeffrey Landon, 58, in a press release. He has been charged with one count of assault with a deadly weapon and an additional hate crime count.
“Hate crimes have no place in San Francisco and will be prosecuted,” Jenkins said in a statement. “We are proud of our diversity and will do everything we can to protect the safety of all our people. Hate crimes deeply impact individual victims and the larger community by sowing hate, mistrust, and division. We will not allow hate to flourish in San Francisco and stand for justice.”
Chandler, who was endorsed last week as the top pick of the San Francisco Democratic Party in the race for the District 9 Supervisor seat, told the Bay Area Reporter the attack was “pretty scary” and left him “shaken” despite his “fairly stoic” disposition.
But Chandler also said he remains undaunted, that the attacks underscore his focus on crime and safety issues, and that he will not stop canvassing streets.
“This is sadly too common,” he told the Reporter. “Too many folks in San Francisco are experiencing incidents like this, and it reinforces why I’m so serious about safety in my campaign and I’m grateful for the SFPD and the DA, Brooke Jenkins, very quickly acting on this, and I’m going to keep going door-to-door. Nothing’s going to stop me from going out to talk to voters.”
Landon pleaded not guilty to all charges. He is being held without bail. He is due next in court on August 6 for a preliminary hearing.
