Durham police said Tuesday that they are investigating similarities between the murders of Michael Robert Neice, 30, whose body was discovered Sept. 24, and John Randall Cash, 31, whose body was discovered Sunday.
Both men were Durham residents, and police said both have links to the gay community and to Internet chat rooms.
Although most meeting attendees said a coordinated and formal response should wait until the link is further established, many said quick action is needed to protect LGBT students at UNC. "We can certainly take steps to educate," said Wayne Wilson, who works for health education at UNC and also is the co-chairman of Triangle Community Works. "Gay men are dying, and we need to do something,"
Glenn Grossman, co-chairman of the Carolina Alternative Meetings of Professional and Graduate Students, said he was concerned because he knows many UNC LGBT students meet dates on Internet chat rooms, which the victims might have used.
A concern of many at the meeting was the impact the two murders on the gay community's image in the Triangle. "The straight community will look at (these murders) only as sleaze," said Michael Smith, the president of the Triangle Business and Professional Guild, a group for LGBT employees in the area.
Fred Hashagen, UNC's LGBT administrative assistant, suggested organizing a vigil to remember other aspects of the victims' lives besides their murders and their sexuality.
Most attendees, though, said it is still too early to plan services because the investigation is ongoing and a connection has yet to be formally established.
"It's premature to organize a vigil," graduate student Chantelle Borne said. "It's more important to find out about unsafe practices on campus."
To learn more about the murders, the group will invite a Durham police officer to a meeting in the next week, where they will also coordinate further responses.
