![]() “The Justice Department will continue its efforts to vindicate the rights of those individuals who are affected by bias motivated crimes.” “Today’s sentencing reflects the importance of holding individuals accountable when they commit violent acts against transgender individuals,” Sessions said in a statement. The case, watched nationally amid concerns transgender women are particularly vulnerable to violence, drew comment from U.S. “If I could bring back Mercedes by giving up my life, I would gladly do so.” “Every day, I live with the guilt and regret of my actions,” Vallum said. On Monday, Vallum begged forgiveness from Williamson’s family and friends, though none of them were present - only a few reporters, the judge and Vallum’s father and stepmother. He previously pleaded guilty to a state murder charge that led to a separate sentence of life without parole. Vallum pleaded guilty to the federal charges in December. Both the judge and defence lawyers said Vallum’s history of abuse as a child had to be considered. Guirola could have sentenced Vallum to life in prison, but heeded a lesser sentence suggested in a plea agreement between defence attorneys and prosecutors, citing Vallum’s neglected childhood and other issues. Gang rules barred homosexual activity and declared it punishable by death. Prosecutors said Vallum shocked 17-year-old Mercedes Williamson with a stun gun, stabbed her and beat her to death in 2015 to keep fellow Latin Kings gang members from discovering the two were having sex. It was the first case prosecuted under the federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act involving a victim targeted because of gender identity. ![]() sentenced Joshua Vallum in the 2015 killing of 17-year-old Mercedes Williamson. In a case watched by the LGBT community nationwide, U.S. A Mississippi man received a 49-year prison sentence Monday for the first-ever conviction on federal hate crime charges arising from the killing of a transgender woman. Williamson had transitioned from male to female before dropping out of high school in Alabama, distancing herself from her parents while drifting from place to place.GULFPORT, Miss. The roommate also testified that Vallum once told her and Williamson his gang would kill Vallum and Williamson if Williamson's transgender status was discovered. However, his lawyers have never contested evidence that Vallum had long known Williamson was transgender.Ī witness in state court had testified previously that Vallum and Williamson had sex multiple times while the witness was a roommate with Williamson. He declined to speak with The Associated Press in a March letter, citing advice from his lawyers, and didn't address the issue Monday. He said he "blacked out" and doesn't remember the crime, a variation of what's known as a "gay panic" or "trans panic" defense. Vallum initially told sheriff's deputies and later told The Sun Herald newspaper that he found out that Williamson had a penis on - moments before he killed her. Vallum can't go back and undo what he did to Mercedes," Allred said. Transgender murders in Louisiana part of disturbing trend 01:51 "It's difficult to image how a mother could lock a two- or three-year-old child in a room for house on end while adults did drugs." Vallum lived through a childhood that was characterized by abandonment and neglect," said public defender Ellen Allred. "The Justice Department will continue its efforts to vindicate the rights of those individuals who are affected by bias motivated crimes."Īt Monday's hearing, public defenders submitted a sealed brief to Guirola outlining Vallum's troubles. "Today's sentencing reflects the importance of holding individuals accountable when they commit violent acts against transgender individuals," he said. Prosecutors said Vallum tried to ditch the murder weapons along with other evidence linking him to the crime, CBS affiliate WLOX in Jackson reports.Īttorney General Jeff Sessions issued a statement Monday afternoon reacting to the sentencing. Prosecutors also said that when Williamson tried to run into the woods, Vallum chased her down and bashed her in the head with a hammer. He shocked her with a stun gun and stabbed her in the body and head with a pocketknife, they added. Vallum lured Williamson into a car in Alabama and drove her 50 miles to his family home near Lucedale, Mississippi, prosecutors have said. Federal prosecutor Julia Gegenheimer had said during Vallum's plea hearing in December that he began planning to kill Williamson after a friend called him May 28, 2015, to say he'd discovered her identity.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |