Another Trans Girl Murdered (updated)

[SarahG]

I was sent this via email earlier today. This was someone who was trans (TS)- being transgender was the main motivation for the crime- NOT orientation, and this was not a "gay guy being killed for being gay."

Syracuse man was killed for being gay, police say

Sunday November 16, 2008, 12:31 PM

SYRACUSE, NY - Dwight R. DeLee shot and killed Moses "Teish" Cannon with a .22-caliber rifle Friday night because he didn't like that Cannon was openly gay, Syracuse police said.

Cannon, 22, and his brother, Mark Cannon, 18, both of 404 Arthur St., were shot as they sat in a car parked in front of 411 Seymour St., where they had been invited to a party. The bullet grazed the left arm of Mark Cannon, who was in the driver's seat, and hit Moses Cannon in the chest, police said.

Police have charged DeLee, 20, of 420 Gifford St., with second-degree murder. DeLee went into the home at 411 Seymour St. to get the rifle after guests at the party started "making profane and vulgar comments in regards to the sexual preference of our two victims," police Chief Gary Miguel said.

"There was no previous argument between these individuals, there was no previous fight, there was no bad blood," Miguel said. "Our suspect took a rifle and shot and killed this person, also wounding his brother, for the sole reason he didn't care for the sexual preference of our victim. Isn't that sad? Isn't that a sad situation that that's the sole reason why?

"I talk to you about this atmosphere of violence and that certain individuals believe that violence is the answer no matter what, and here's just another example," Miguel said.

Cannon's family said his death should be treated as a hate crime. Miguel said it's up to the District Attorney's office to decide if it's a hate crime.

Police started searching for DeLee after interviewing witnesses. He was located at 2 a.m. Sunday at a residence in Liverpool, police said.

Miguel said there's no indication the Cannons were lured to the party so they could be assaulted. "The person who called (to invite them to the party) is a friend," Miguel said.

I find it interesting that there is even doubt about whether or not this was a hate crime. That much is obvious, but even more disturbing than that is that DeLee was only charged with second-degree murder.

Based on the media reports so far it is pretty clear that DeLee;
1- Discharged a firearm in City limits
2- Assaulted the brother who had a bullet pass through his arm
3- 1st Degree Murder for the death of Teish
4- #3 was a hate crime.

This was premeditated, DeLee went out of his way to retrieve the rifle, went out of his way to walk up to the car- and intentionally shot Cannon in the chest. Yet as far as the police and DA's office is concerned, this somehow only meets the criteria of 2nd degree murder, and probably only because the victim was to them a "2nd class citizen."

I highly doubt the Syracuse story will involve a hate crime charge knowing what I know of that city and it's prosecution system. To an outsider it wouldn't be something to expect from the city famed for the Jerry Rescue, but times change and so has that city's progressiveness.

What the media reports haven't brought up was that DeLee didn't live in the home where the rifle was retrieved from, which makes me wonder if he was being aided in his effort to assassinate someone for such a blatantly stupid and bigoted reason.

This posting has been edited by myself to fix pronoun usage, first name usage given new information. It's bad enough the media are using "he" and "man," that doesn't mean I have to in talking about the same case.

I have edited this post a second time to delete any off topic commentary about the broader topic of targeted killings.

[casca82]

lay off the crack, you wack job

[SarahG]

-deleted to keep this on topic-

[SarahG]

Update- this WAS someone who was trans, there was an update to the story today (the story emailed to me was a day old).

Gender motive in death, cops say
Dwight DeLee is accused of killing Moses Cannon, 22, who was a transsexual.
Monday, November 17, 2008
By Matt Michael
Staff writer

Syracuse police are saying what the family of Moses "Teish" Cannon believed all along: Cannon was shot and killed Friday because of his sexual orientation.

Police have charged Dwight R. DeLee, of Syracuse, with Cannon's murder. DeLee, 20, is scheduled to be arraigned on a second-degree murder charge today in Syracuse City Court.

Cannon and his brother, Mark Cannon, both of 404 Arthur St., were shot with a .22-caliber rifle as they sat in a parked car in front of 411 Seymour St. about 8:45 p.m. Friday. The bullet grazed the left arm of Mark Cannon, who was in the driver's seat, and hit Moses Cannon in the chest, police said.

The brothers drove to 411 Seymour St. to attend a party. DeLee went into the house to get the rifle after guests started "making profane and vulgar comments in regards to the sexual preference of our two victims," Syracuse police Chief Gary Miguel said.

Moses Cannon, 22, often dressed like a woman and had a boyfriend. Family members called Cannon "Teish" and used "she" when speaking about him. Shaconia Williams,

Cannon's sister, said Cannon called himself a transsexual.

Mark Cannon, 18, said Sunday that he and Moses did not know DeLee, although they had seen him around the neighborhood. Sgt. Tom Connellan, speaking for the police, said Moses Cannon was not wearing women's clothing Friday night.

"There was no previous argument between these individuals, there was no previous fight, there was no bad blood," Miguel said. "Our suspect took a rifle and shot and killed this person, also wounding his brother, for the sole reason he didn't care for the sexual preference of our victim. Isn't that sad? Isn't that a sad situation that that's the sole reason why?

"I talk to you about this atmosphere of violence and that certain individuals believe that violence is the answer no matter what, and here's just another example," Miguel added.

From the outset, Cannon's family said his death should be treated as a hate crime. Family members said Sunday that DeLee's arrest did not give them any comfort.

"I don't understand. It was 8:30 at night, and they weren't causing any trouble," said Williams, . "You can put (DeLee) away for 1,000 years, and it's not going to make up for what happened."

Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said if his investigators determine the killing was a hate crime, his office will ask a grand jury to consider it. A hate crime is not a separate murder charge, Fitzpatrick said, but it would increase the minimum penalty from 15 years to life to 20 years to life.

Fitzpatrick said his office is still investigating. He said it's possible other people were involved and additional charges could be brought against DeLee.

Police started searching for DeLee after interviewing witnesses. He was located at 2 a.m. Sunday at a residence in Liverpool, police said.

Police listed DeLee's home address as 420 Gifford St., which is the address for the Altamont Program, an alcohol and drug abuse treatment facility. A phone call to the facility's director was not returned Sunday. Police said DeLee had prior convictions on weapon and drug charges.

Miguel said there's no indication the Cannons were lured to the party so they could be assaulted. "The person who called (to invite them to the party) is a friend," Miguel said.

Cannon's death marks the 18th homicide in Syracuse, Connellan said.

Moses and Mark Cannon often hung out together, and family members referred to them as "Bonnie and Clyde." They described "Teish" as someone who loved family and helping others.

"I'm angry. It wasn't her time to go," said Tameka Johnson, Cannon's sister. "She was so full of life and had so much left to give."

Cannon's loss leaves a void in the family that's going to be hard to fill, relatives said. On Sunday, nearly 20 relatives and friends gathered at Cannon's home to comfort each other and share stories about "Teish."

"She was always there for me," said Cannon's niece, Maniya Cannon, 10. "She would do anything to help other people."

http://www.syracuse.com/poststandard...l=1&thispage=1

[Solitary Brother]

I agree with you Sarah.
Whoever did this is permanently defective.

[SarahG]

I agree with you Sarah.
Whoever did this is permanently defective.

I will be honest here, to clarify- my original posting was quite different before I found the newer story.

casca82 was replying to my original post which was talking about the signs that there is a trend in recent years, of youthful adults & minors (high schoolers) beating to death & shooting people of specific demographics, once I saw the newer story and what the real specifics were- I ate my hat & deleted my original posting & commentary.

Had the facts been as the first article stated, I would have stood by my words- but I also was not about to disrespect her the way the papers are, with perpetuating the talk of it being a "gay guy killing" over "sexual orientation."

[SarahG]

HRC has a statement out

http://www.hrc.org/11556.htm

I will be watching their reaction, I wonder if they're going to botch it like every time trans issues come up in legislative discussions.

[BeardedOne]

This is especially hard as she seemed to have the loving support of her family, which is not something many Ts have in their lives.

[Ts CinthyaNY]

It's a shame and very sad . Hope they put this guy away for good .

[MrShow52]

I feel like if she got with him under the guise of not being a tranny then it's kind of her fault. Not that he should kill her over it but it definitely wouldn't have happened if she was just honest about who she was.