MADISON, Wis. (AP) — An inmate doing time at a maximum security prison in Wisconsin for trying to kill his mother strangled his cellmate for being Black and gay, investigators said.
Prosecutors charged Jackson Vogel, 24, on Thursday with first-degree intentional homicide with hate crime and repeat offender penalty enhancers in the killing of 19-year-old Micah Laureano at the Green Bay Correctional Institution.
Vogel was 16 when he repeatedly stabbed his mother with a knife, strangled her and attempted to snap her neck, according the appellate opinion upholding his conviction and 40-year sentence. An attorney who handled Vogel’s appeal, Erica Bauer, didn’t immediately respond Friday to an email requesting comment on the new charges.
Laureano was sentenced in January to two years — one behind bars and one on extended supervision — for being a party to substantial battery. His attorney, Maura McMahon, has described Laureano as a funny, thoughtful young man who was a talented artist. She didn’t immediately respond to an email Friday seeking comment from her and Laureano’s family.