Yes, I do think that this particularly crime against Matthew Shepherd was evil. It clearly demonstrated the ignorance and prejudice's not only of Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson but also, of the entire town of Laramie.
We know that Matthew was in a bar, and we know that alcohol impairs our judgement. But, I think that Matthew would still be alive if he had not shared so openly about his sexual orientation. I certainly don’t think that he needed to be the first gay person to "come out" in this town of homophobic people. After all there were many folks in Laramie that were gay and never openly admitted it, because of the stigma placed on homosexuals. "Don’t ask Don’t tell".
Unfortunately, this situation is no different from racism against non-whites. Being of African American descent, there are places down south that I wouldn’t go to, not even to drive through. Although lynching is against the law and is considered a felony, it's still practiced in some southern states. The KKK groups are still here.
I think that these young men committed this crime out of sheer ignorance and fear. These young men were taught by their parents to hate homosexuals. Maybe they were intimidated by Matthew's honesty.