Black Man Acquitted of Stabbing White Man

A Portland, Oregon, jury has cleared a black man of assault charges for stabbing a white man — after it was revealed that the victim said the N-word after the attack.

Gary Edwards, 43, was found not guilty of second-degree assault after knifing Gregory Howard Jr., 43, on July 7, KPTV reported.

Edwards admitted to stabbing Howard Jr., but claimed it was in self-defense after the victim had used racial slurs, Oregon Live reported.

Both men are homeless and have lengthy rap sheets.

Video from transit cameras showed Edwards approach Howard, who was sitting on a bench, from behind with a fixed-blade knife in his hand.

As soon as Howard sees Edwards, he jumps up and starts pushing him, and the pair briefly scuffle against a wall before Edwards suddenly stabs Howard in the shoulder.

There is no audio on the video, but Edwards’ defense attorney, Daniel Small, told the jury his client was approaching Howard to see if he would trade his knife for cigarettes.

Police body camera footage captured Howard calling Edwards the N-word in the aftermath of the attack, after cops rushed over to intervene.

Howard claimed he only used the racial slur after being stabbed, but Edwards testified that the victim called him the word the moment he saw him.

“What other than racism could explain why Mr Howard perceived hatred, animosity and aggression from a complete stranger?” Small told the jury.

The prosecution said it was irrelevant what Howard said after the attack. Prosecutors also argued that Edwards was always “in control” throughout the attack.

“The defendant is not scared for his life. He didn’t retreat, he sauntered up — and he sauntered away after he stabbed someone. The defendant created the situation,” prosecutor Katherine Williams told the jury.

Edwards, who was acquitted on Oct. 31, has previous convictions for attempted second-degree assault in 2021, and was sentenced to three years in prison for a separate stabbing at a Portland light rail station in May 2020.

He was also accused of fourth-degree assault over a fight with a store clerk, but the case was dismissed in June because of a lack of available public defenders.

Howard also has a lengthy rap sheet, and was convicted of felony rape of a child in Kitsap County, WA, in 1997, records show.