Privilege & Entitlement: A Look at Philadelphia Gay Bashing Suspect Kathryn Knott

Guest post by Tim Peacock

Though most have heard about the brutal attack on two gay men in Philadelphia that transpired earlier this month, many haven’t learned much about the suspects indicted this week for the attack. Of the three suspects arrested, one in particular stands out as a shining example of privilege and entitlement: 24-year-old Kathryn Knott. The daughter of (Philadelphia-area) Chalfont Township Police Chief Karl Knott, Kathryn Knott serves as a living example of virtually every stereotypical child-of-privilege and law enforcement cliché including abuse of police power for personal gain.

After her arrest (with her two male accomplices), Knott’s past came to light fairly quickly since she leads an active and open social media life. Not only does her Twitter feed glorify binge drinking (and ejection from public spaces due to that drinking), it also contains evidence of xenophobic and homophobic behavior as well as potentially illegal behavior related to her X-Ray Technician work at a local hospital.

In a collection of tweets first aggregated by Memeograph’s Scott Wooledge, Knott’s sordid history reads more like a Ke$ha music video than of an upstanding respectable citizen that “couldn’t bust a grape” (her attorney’s words). Here are a handful of tweets from that collection demonstrating Knott’s personality and predilections (includes not safe for work language):









Worse than her general disregard for humanity, Knott seems to revel in the abuse of her father’s law enforcement power. Take a look:



Privilege and prejudice aside, Knott faces additional troubles after her arrest and subsequent national attention: potential violations of HIPAA law. After a deep examination of Knott’s Twitter account, many noticed what appears to be patient information (x-rays and photos of patients) posted to her account. Responding immediately to the allegations, Lansdale Hospital (Knott’s employer) issued a statement condemning the alleged activity and announcing Knott’s suspension pending investigation. They said in part:

"We can confirm that Kathryn Knott has been employed at Lansdale Hospital since May 2011. Because of the nature of the charges against her, she has been suspended from her job as an Emergency Room tech. We are investigating an additional issue that was brought to our attention related to this employee’s Twitter account for potential violations of patient privacy and our organization’s social media policy. Abington Health takes patient privacy and confidentiality very seriously and is fully investigating this matter.”

Thus far Knott has only spoken through her attorney Lou Buscio who claims Knott had no involvement in the attack. Buscio has gone so far as to argue that Knott is innocent and that the brutal attack on two gay men was nothing more than a “simple assault” undeserving of national media attention.

Because nothing says “simple assault” more than facial fractures, a broken orbital bone, lacerations requiring 24 stitches, hospitalization and having your jaw wired shut due to extensive injuries.

Knott and the two other attack suspects have been released on bail after their arraignment. In the meantime, public officials including openly gay Pennsylvania state Rep. Brian Sims (video below), Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, and several Philadelphia city council members have renewed calls for reinstating sexual orientation and gender identity into city and state hate crime laws after they were removed in 2008 by the state Supreme Court.
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Having been a "Guest" at Abington Memorial Hospital, I can attest to how atrocious that place is.