Eric Porterfield
Eric Earl Porterfield is an American politician and a Republican former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing District 27, which includes parts of Mercer and Raleigh counties. First elected in 2018, Porterfield is the second blind person ever to serve in the West Virginia legislature. Alongside being known for being a physically disabled politician, Porterfield is also well known for his unwavering opposition to rights for LGBT people, who he has compared to terrorists and the Ku Klux Klan. He is on video expressing that, should his daughter or son come out gay, he would “see if they knew how to swim;” implying he would drown them. In the June 2020 primary he was defeated in his bid for re-election, coming in last of Republican candidates running.
Early life and education
Porterfield was born and raised in Princeton, West Virginia. Describing himself as a "pretty wild, out-of-control teenager," he later attended a Bible college at age 20. In 2006, at age 32, he was blinded as a result of a head injury received in a physical altercation. Porterfield has not discussed the cause or nature of the altercation, noting "I can't fully get into all the details of it, because there's still some stuff pending on it, but a major altercation with a multitude of men ended up leaving me instantaneously blind on December 10, 2006."According to a police report, the altercation occurred shortly after 3 a.m. in the parking lot of Cavanaugh's Sports Bar and Eatery in Schererville, Indiana. The responding officer indicated that he saw two individuals "jump" Porterfield after a verbal argument with Porterfield and another man, later identified as Steve McPherson. When the officer asked Porterfield what happened, Porterfield responded: " a cop so fucking figure it out." The officer further detailed that Porterfield was "very uncooperative" and "refused to answer any questions other than his name" or provide photo identification. Porterfield was initially charged with one count of misdemeanor disorderly conduct. Porterfield was taken to the emergency room by ambulance and diagnosed with bilateral globe perforation. Despite the severity of his injuries and resulting blindness, Porterfield declined to press criminal charges against anyone involved in the incident and declined to give a formal statement, leading police to discontinue the investigation.
Porterfield subsequently filed a civil personal injury action against the sports bar for negligent and/or reckless conduct in failing to take reasonable care for his safety as a patron. In a sworn deposition taken November 25, 2008, Porterfield stated he and McPherson arrived at Cavanaugh's around 11:00 p.m. on December 9, 2006, after leaving a strip club in Harvey, Illinois. According to the police report, a verbal altercation began shortly after 3:00 a.m. in the bar's parking lot after McPherson touched a woman without her consent. McPherson apologized to the woman, at which point Porterfield approached and asked, "what are you apologizing to this bitch for? You don't have to apologize." Porterfield then asked two of the woman's friends, Jesus Venegas and Jason Dorado, "what are you bitches going to do about it?" Dorado later stated in a sworn deposition that he then saw Porterfield knock down Venegas. According to Dorado, Anthony Acevedo, the woman's cousin, hit Porterfield, leading Dorado to put Porterfield in a headlock. Dorado stated he "poked eyes out" after Porterfield bit off part of Dorado's ear.