Kalvinn Garcia, 26, terrorized the patrons of Seattle, Washington’s Queer/Bar on February 24, 2020, when he set it on fire. Thankfully, those inside the bar at the time of the fire were evacuated safely. Garcia pleaded guilty to the hate crime in 2022. During his hearing, the court heard from FBI Seattle Special Agent in Charge Richard A. Collodi that Garcia admitted to setting the fire to hurt people based on his own bias. Garcia also told a stranger that he intended to trap and hurt the people inside the LGBTQ+ bar by setting fire to it. Garcia’s guilty plea could have landed him a maximum of ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, it was decided that Garcia would be sentenced to 48 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Speaking at Garcia’s sentencing, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said that Garcia committed an act of violence targeting innocent victims inside the LGBTQ+ Bar, a known safe space for the LGBTQI+ community. Clarke expects that the sentence sends the message that every person in the country deserves equal protection regardless of who they love or how they identify. Many feel a mere 48 months of prison followed by three years of supervised release for such a violent crime isn't enough to teach anyone a lesson. #Queer Up Courts