![]() ![]() § 249) was passed by Congress in 2009, and enacted in 2010.Ĭopyright 2017 WLOX. ![]() Hate Crimes Prevent Action of 2009 (18 U.S.C. ![]() The outcome of this case would not have been possible without the partnership between local, state and federal law enforcement." "The FBI's mission is to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States, and we will continue to pursue that mission in Mississippi. "Crimes motivated by hate have devastating effects on the victims, their families and community, but also leave a blemish on our society as a whole," said Special Agent in Charge Freeze. "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," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Joshua Vallum, 29, plead guilty in the 2015 killing of 17-year-old Mercedes Williamson and was sentenced to life in prison in July 2016 by an Alabama judge. As part of his guilty plea, Vallum acknowledged that he would not have killed Williamson if she was not transgender. He also falsely claimed to investigators that he killed Williamson in a panic after discovering she was transgender. Prosecutors said Vallum then tried to get rid of the murder weapons and other evidence linking him to the crime. Vallum admitted that he then used a stun gun to shock Williamson in the chest, repeatedly stabbed her, and hit her with a hammer until she died. On May 29, 2015, Vallum found Williamson at her home in Alabama, lured her into his car, and drove her to his father's home in Lucedale, Mississippi. Vallum believed he would be in danger if other Latin Kings members found out that he had engaged in a consensual sexual relationship with a transgender woman. Vallum admitted, as part of his guilty plea, that on May 28, 2015, he decided to kill Williamson after learning that a friend had discovered Williamson was transgender. After Vallum ended his romantic and sexual relationship with Williamson, he had no contact with her until May 2015. Joshua Vallum killed Mercedes Williamson, 17, because he allegedly feared reprisals from gang members if they discovered his relationship with a transgender woman. But he kept all of it a secret from his family, friends, and other members of the Latin Kings and Queens Nation gang to which he belonged. Gang member sentenced to life for killing transgender teenĪccording to prosecutors, Vallum admitted having a consensual sexual relationship with Williamson and that he knew Williamson was transgender. ![]()
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