Police in Washington D.C. say one Marine stabbed another Marine to death after a fight that began when the suspect used an anti-gay slur to refer to the victim.
The slaying occurred early Saturday morning on Barracks Row, a bustling neighborhood near the Marine Barracks in Southeast D.C. Police say the suspect, 20-year-old Michael Joseph Poth, lives at the barracks.
Poth allegedly used a pocketknife to stab 23-year-old Philip Bushong once in the chest. Bushong, who was based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., died at a hospital. Poth has been charged with second-degree murder.
Marine Capt. John Norton, a Marine Barracks Washington spokesman, says Bushong's death is "obviously a tragedy" and says the Marines are cooperating with local authorities.
Police believe the two men did not know each other before the fight.
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