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Why Was the Principal Killed?

A trio of 18-year-olds is charged with murdering D.C. principal Brian Betts after finding him through a gay chat line. Benjamin Sarlin on the Betts case’s big break and how other gay men have been targeted.

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Students, teachers, family and friends attend the wake for principal Brian Betts who was slain in his Silver Spring home. (Marvin Joseph, The Washington Post / Getty Images)
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The trio of teenagers who allegedly carried out a deadly robbery attempt against a Washington, D.C., principal used a gay chat line. But despite the suspects’ methods and alleged choice of victim, police tell The Daily Beast they see no anti-gay motive to the crime.

Brian Betts, a rising star in...

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