Transgender Woman Gets 41 Months After Accepting Plea Deal
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 24-year-old transgender Minneapolis woman received a sentence of 41 months in prison Monday after making a plea agreement to a reduced charge of second degree manslaughter, according to the Trans Youth Support Network.
Chrishaun "CeCe" McDonald was originally charged on June 7, 2011, for allegedly stabbing Dean Schmitz, 47, with a pair of scissors near the intersection of 29th Street East and 27th Avenue South in Minneapolis.
The network, which aims to promote racial, social, and economic justice for transgender youth, said in a press release that McDonald initially faced two charges of second-degree murder. But, on May 2, 2012, she accepted a plea agreement which reduced the charges to a single one of second-degree manslaughter.
Police said the stabbing occurred around 12:30 a.m. on June 5, 2011. Police found Schmitz with a stab wound on his chest. Emergency crews tried to save him, but Schmitz died at the scene.
Police learned the stabbing had taken place after a fight involving two groups. McDonald was taken into custody shortly after.
McDonald told police she pulled out the scissors to scare Schmitz, and Schmitz ran into them.
The network said Judge Daniel Moreno gave McDonald credit for serving 275 days. McDonald has spent the past 366 days in jail or under in-home monitoring.
The network expressed concern that McDonald will serve her sentence in a men's prison, where the threat of physical and sexual violence is high for transgender women.
It is not known where McDonald will serve her sentence.
