A bar conversation reportedly laced with talk of homosexuality ended with an openly gay man bleeding on the ground and a Cannon Falls man accused of assaulting him.

The incident occurred Saturday outside a bar in the southern Dakota County community of Randolph.

Keevn C. Otte, 23, is charged in Dakota County District Court with third-degree assault after allegedly attacking the man while the victim discussed his sexuality outside the bar.

A witness who was with the victim said it was "pretty clear" that Otte didn't like the fact that the man was gay and that he saw Otte jump on the victim and start punching him.

The victim, identified in the criminal complaint by the initials J.W.M., told police that he was speaking about his sexuality with a woman, identified by the initials A.M., and noticed that Otte was uncomfortable. The next thing he knew, he said, he was on the ground with his eyes full of blood and a gash in his forehead.

He also remembered a beer mug being brought to the side of his head, according to the complaint.

In an interview with officers, Otte said that he was getting along fine with the men until they began telling him that he looked like a 12-year-old. They then asked him if he was gay, he said, to which he replied, "No," adding a slur.

He alleged one of the men approached him quickly, prompting Otte to react out of fear for his safety. He denied striking the victim with anything and did not know how J.W.M. had been cut.

The woman, A.M., said that she went outside the bar with Otte, and heard Otte and J.W.M. argue about whether Otte was gay. She said Otte tackled J.W.M., and she heard glass break. Then, she said, she went back inside the bar.

The victim was treated for his injuries at a Cannon Falls hospital.

ANTHONY LONETREE