25 years is NOT enough. However, at least he did get convicted. Isn't this the first conviction for killing a transgendered? I can only hope that some big dude with a complex for making his "women" dress in drag and offer up their asses at all available times gets a hold of this asshole sometime during his 25 years (oh and it better be 25 fucking years not 20 years and time off or parole after 10 or some retarded fucking crap like that).

Hopefully the sentence won't be 3 months probation. The criminal justice system doesn't seem to think that transgender people's lives are worth very much.

@Ethan: It will be 25 years. They got the hate crimes inclusive past the jury, and I do believe that means that it will be a mandatory 25 years. The very fact that this got past the jury at all means that they obviously are starting to value lives of individuals that live differently much more than ever before.

@galefan2004: The actions of his family members in and out of the courtroom helped a lot with the jury verdict. They are the ones to thank (his family). Indirectly of course.

"Isn't this the first conviction for killing a transgendered?"

No, the killer of Angie Zapata in Greeley, Co. got a sentence this spring, that was the first. He only got a manslaughter conviction because the victim was a trans person. We're only half-people apparently, so only a half-murder sentence.

I was wondering about the manslaughter vs. murder charge. Thanks, I should have known.

Considering none of us know the details of the crime, or at least no one that has commented seems to know the details of the crime, should NOT jump to conclusions about why this charge was manslaughter and not murder. NO ONE should automatically assume it was charged as manslaughter just because it was a trans person. At least he got convicted of what he was charged with, that is what should be important. IF anyone feels that the charge should have been murder, then read the facts and then come up with an argument, otherwise shut up

@Kropotkin: I think I meant to say the first murder conviction. That sucks that he only got convicted of manslaughter. This dude deserved his murder conviction. Its time this nation realized that beautiful transgendered people are every bit the worth of anyone else.

"IF anyone feels that the charge should have been murder, then read the facts and then come up with an argument, otherwise shut up"

He went up to a car window with a rifle and shot someone in the face in front of a bunch of witnesses in front of a house party. He did it with premeditation since he once he found out that she was trans and her brother was gay, he went in the house to get the rifle and came out and shot them both. What more information do you need?

The only reason for a reduced sentence I can think of is that some witnesses were intimidated by the shooters friends and didn't show up to testify. But jury didn't seemed too swayed by that since they convicted himof the same crime on a lessor charge anyway.

If you want to make apologies for a justice system that biased against LGBT people of all stripes, then you can STFU. The last thing I'd think I'd see that kind of thing is here at queerty.

"@Kropotkin: I think I meant to say the first murder conviction."

Sorry, I missunderstood you, I thought you meant the first hate crimes conviction for the murder of a trans person. People have been convicted of killing trans people before, but usually it's cases like this were clear murder charges are bargained down to manslaughter or sometimes mistermeaner (sp?) charges because prosecutors are nervous over the victim's gender status impression will make on the jury or they just don't care. A lot of these cases never even see a proper investigation or arrest, especially if it is a trans woman of color and double so if she's a sex worker.

So you an

R U STILL CONSIIDERED A TRANSSEXUAL IF U PORTRAY THE XTERISTICS OF UR TRUE SEXUAL IDENTITY???????????

LIKE A SO CALLED PREGNANT MAN

TRANS PEOPLE NEED HELP