Deleted texts helped convince jurors man killed trans woman because of gender ID, foreperson says

By JAMES POLLARD
Associated Press/Report for America

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A member of the jury that convicted a South Carolina man of a hate crime based on gender identity has opened up about the historic case. Jurors last Friday found Daqua Ritter guilty in the fatal shooting of Dime Doe, a transgender woman whom Ritter had been seeing secretly. A transgender woman, Dee Elder, served as jury foreperson. She told The Associated Press that text messages between Ritter and Doe were the key reason jurors concluded the crime was motivated by bias. The FBI has said Ritter feared that public knowledge of his connection to a transgender woman would bring humiliation. The case is considered the first federal trial over a hate crime motivated by gender identity.