Oregon Woman Convicted of Obstructing Justice in Hate Crime Against Gay Couple & Their Poodle

Here is a story that I missed last year. A young twentysomething gay couple was walking their pink poodle -- named Beauty -- in Hillsboro, Oregon, back on March 1, 2013. An SUV pulled up next to them and the driver began yelling anti-gay slurs at the men and making fun of their dog. The driver then got out of his SUV and began punching one of the men in the face with his fist. He then hit the same man in the back of his head with a foot-long metal wrench. Fortunately, the victim was not severely injured from this attack.

Better yet, several witnesses managed to write down the license plate number of the SUV and police eventually arrested 23-year-old George Mason Jr. and charged him with 2nd degree intimidation, 2nd degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon, reckless driving, and federal hate crime charges. That trial is still winding its way through the court system.

But Mason's wife, Saraya Gardner -- also found herself facing charges related to this case. She was charged with obstructing justice after federal officials said that she lied about Mason's whereabouts to police officers and then repeatedly misled them regarding the assault.


We learned earlier this week that Gardner was found guilty of one count of obstruction of justice by a jury of her peers. She is understandably upset about the verdict and believe that the jury was tainted by evidence of her husband's anti-gay slurs.

Gardner's sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 12, 2014. She faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. She and her attorney are already planning to appeal this conviction.