Derek Whitener
Derek Whitener is singing again, just over a week after he suffered a brutal beating after he shopped at the Target on Haskell on Jan. 14.
“I sang again with Derek this morning. Anyone who doubts the power of music, I wish you could see the difference it makes for him. Just another reminder why art is so important,” friend Brina Wingo wrote on the GoFundMe page she launched for her friend after his attack.
The fund, which first sought to raise $60,000 and now hopes to bring in $100,000, has almost reached its goal after several A-list actors took up the cause. Both Jamie Lee Curtis of “Freaky Friday” and Jesse Tyler Ferguson of “Modern Family” tweeted their support for Whitener along with a link to the account.
Random act of violence meet random acts of kindness. Please help! Derek’s Medical Bills by Brina Wingo – GoFundMe https://t.co/Yz7QHa9wg4
— Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis) January 17, 2017
Please join me in donating to and sharing Derek’s GoFundMe page. We can’t sit silent while these things happen. https://t.co/ON00ubbenj
— Jesse Tyler Ferguson (@jessetyler) January 19, 2017
WFAA reports that Target’s security has been questioned, since Whitener alerted an officer after his assailants followed him through the parking lot on his way into the store. The officer told the men to leave, one of whom carried a large wooden stick. They returned in gorilla masks, and beat Whitener so severely it fractured his skull, requiring brain surgery.
Police are still looking for information about the attackers, who are both described as black men ages 18-20 who are about 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds. Anyone with information should call Detective Hubner in the DPD Assaults Unit at 214.671.3639 or, to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 214.373.TIPS(8477).
The two men suspected of attacking Derek Whitener on Jan. 14, 2017. (Photo from DPD)
