I first heard about Gerbils from Rush Limbaugh, (I used to listen to him on the radio when I lived in Port Charlotte in the early 90's. He did not make it up, he was repeating the story referenced here:

" ...the Bloomberg Financial Services version of the story ended with a quote from Sheriff Hugo Root: "It serves the faggots right."

How could you forget a name like Hugo Root? You couldn't make something like that up, no one would believe it. Or would they?

I immediately dismissed it as typical Limbaughjournalism. The tactic is tried and true, and thoroughly familiar:

"See how stupid and evil gay people are, we all know that, and here's proof. Liberals are always sticking up for gays, so they must be stupid and evil too. QED."

Besides not trusting the source, there were other contradictions. It is obvious this trick could not be pulled off without the assistance of another gay person. And if you already have two horny gay persons in the same room, why bother with a gerbil?