Lesbian Recovering After Gin Bottle Attack

A lesbian who was hit in the head with a gin bottle, leaving her hospitalized with numerous cuts to her face and neck, is continuing to recover, the woman's mother said, as the man who allegedly hit her faces charges of attempted murder and other counts.

Tanrence Joe Owens, 30, has been accused of trying to kill the victim during an apparent dispute over money. The woman's mother gave permission to identify her daughter by her first name, Earina, who is better known as "Ray Ray."

"She's blessed, she is blessed," Sandra Bacon, 50, said of her daughter Tuesday. "She's still not ready to talk and see anybody, but they removed the stitches."
The apartment building where an LGBT woman was allegedly attacked. Photo: Seth Hemmelgarn

Earina had been at San Francisco General Hospital but she's been moved to a medical rehabilitation center, Bacon said. (Earina has asked through Bacon that her last name not be published.)

Owens pleaded not guilty Monday, September 30 to charges of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and battery with serious bodily injury, according to Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the district attorney's office. Owens's next court date is October 22 to set a date for a preliminary hearing.

According to the police report, at about 6:30 a.m. Thursday, September 26, Owens approached the victim while she was asleep and started asking for money she allegedly owed him.

He allegedly poured water on her and told her he'd count to seven. She eventually pushed him, and he struck her once with a gin bottle, which broke and cut Earina.

When police arrived, the report says, they found Owens in a closet. The incident occurred in the unit block of Dakota Street, in the Potrero Hill neighborhood.

Owens is in custody on $350,000 bail. Just before he made a brief court appearance last Friday, Bacon shared photos of Earina in the hospital. There were several cuts on her face and what appeared to be a large gash along her neck.

Deputy Public Defender Alex Lilien said after Friday's hearing that it was "conceivable" the injuries had resulted from a single strike with a bottle, as a witness stated. Lilien hadn't yet seen the photos of Earina or medical records.

Owens seems "very alarmed about the extent of the injuries and very concerned about [Earina's] well-being," he said.

Bacon said Tuesday Earina hasn't yet spoken with police.

"She's not strong enough," she said. "I'm not going to force my daughter" to talk and authorities "have more than enough" information to prosecute the case, she said.

Lilien said Owens has a criminal history that includes drug-related charges, but it doesn't appear he has been charged in violent incidents.

He also said Owens and Earina had been on decent terms. They were friendly.

Earina had once been the girlfriend of the mother of Owens's 2-year-old son, according to Earina's ex-girlfriend's mother, who asked that her name only be published as Kay. Bacon said she had "no idea" how Earina identified, but she said, "I guess" as a lesbian.

Bacon has said her daughter "can have her mood swings, but she has a big heart, and she's a very outgoing, loving person."

Kay, 52, who's raising her grandson, said in a phone interview that she wasn't at the apartment when Earina was hit.

She said when she'd left for the store just before the incident to get supplies for a barbeque, Earina was asleep.

Earina is "a sweet young lady" who "makes me laugh," Kay said, adding, "I love Ray Ray."

Owens is "not a violent person," she said. "I thought they were cool ... I don't know what the hell happened." Owens didn't live in the apartment but had stayed there "off and on," she said.

A woman who answered the door at Kay's home Monday afternoon said she hadn't been there when Owens struck Earina, and nobody else was available to talk. The woman, who didn't want her name published, was keeping an eye on an infant who appeared to be Owens's son as she spoke. A sign on the front door publicized visiting hours for the unit.

In court Friday, Lilien said, "Most of the witnesses involved seem to have fairly extensive criminal histories." Afterward, he said he didn't yet know more specific information.

Lilien said that since the case is being charged as a premeditated attempted murder, it carries the possibility of a life sentence.

Bacon said she doesn't want a "lengthy trial."

"He tried to kill my daughter, and he's going to pay," she said.