Murderer of trans woman sentenced to 30 years
A man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for the murder of trans woman Keyonna Blakeney.
Blakeney was the 9th trans woman to be killed in the US in 2016.
Keith C. Renier received the maximum sentence possible for committing second-degree murder in Maryland.
Blakeney was stabbed multiple times by Renier.
He attacked the 22-year-old after meeting her with a friend.
He and the man had allegedly intended to rob her.
However she was found dead and her room “appeared to have been ransacked”.
Five days before the murder of Blakeney, Renier pleaded guilty to a weapons charge.
He had been arrested for brandishing a knife on a train platform.
2016 was the deadliest year on record for trans homicides.
27 trans people were recorded as dead with a large majority being trans women of colour.
However, the actual number of trans homicides is likely to be much higher than recorded due to misgendered victims and unreported murders.
This year, 17 trans people have been murdered in the US.
Last week, Gwynevere River Song was shot to death in Texas.
The 26-year-old was shot in Waxahachie following an argument.
It is believed that they identified as transfeminine non-binary.
Ellis County Sheriff’s PIO Sgt. Joe Fitzgerald told the Waxahachie Daily Light that another person had also been injured in the shooting.
“Upon arrival, deputies and medics rendered aid to the injured male. American Medical Response transported the man to the hospital. [The deceased] remained inside the residence and succumbed to injuries,” Fitzgerald said at the time.
