There is harmony in Autumn

and a lustre in the sky,

which through the summer

is not heard or seen

as if it could not be,

as if it had not been.

Hi everyone! I wanted to start this off with a poem about my favorite season written by Percy Bysshe Shelly. I can say that even being in an environment that is very callous and unappealing, I can take comfort in this season that is filled with warmth and joy. No matter where I am, I will never take for granted the beauty of life and knowing I am a creation like the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees. I have a newfound respect and adoration for life and all things attributed to it.

I plan to keep this posting short because I want to share an essay with you all: “Love in Action: Noting Similarities between Lynching Then and Anti-LGBT Violence Now.” It was shared with me by the author, a dear friend of mine and a literary genius by the name of Koritha Mitchell–a professor at Ohio State University (check out herother selected works). I love her work and encourage all to check out her pieces.

But I do want to talk about some things that have upset me over the last couple of months. The first thing is that for the movie “The Dallas Buyers Club” they casted a cisgender-presumably-hetero-man to play the role of a transgender woman when there are so many trans people who are talented actors who could have been casted for the roles of trans people who are usually given to cisgender people. I hate that Hollywood feel that stories about trans people are better told by cisgender people who haven’t even had the struggles of day-to-day life as a trans person.

I’m also irritated by the fact that people of color can’t even go shopping without cops pulling them over and harassing them on the legitimacy of one’s earnings to buy a Ferragamo belt or Louis Vuitton satchel. When did “shopping while Black” become an addition to the list of activities a POC couldn’t do without someone assuming it has to be illegal because they’re African-American. It’s even more annoying knowing that these things usually only happen to people of color. The real criminals are the politicians and bankers who lie and steal from the middle-class and the poor. So, when the hell are undercover cops going to stop and question how they got their Louis Vuitton?

And one thing that truly grind my gears is the hypocrisies of Republican politicians who feel that it’s “moral” and “logical” to take away funding from everything that would benefit those who don’t get a nice Senate or Congress check–like food assistance and Head Start–and those very “immoralites” get millions of dollars in subsidies from  the very government they denounce. They say the ACA is evil and to “not let government in your healthcare,” when many of these very politicians have passed laws that intrude on the personal health decisions for women. It’s a shame knowing these are the people elected to run our country. Yes, the racism and sexism isn’t enough so they attack us financially and they say all of it is our faults. Oh, how I hate them so.

Well, I’m about to end this. You’ll be hearing from me soon. And I want to leave you with this:

“Dreams come true. Without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them.” –John Updike

Love,

CeCe

>via: http://supportcece.wordpress.com/2013/11/24/harmony-in-autumn/

__________________________

Monday, August 5 2013

CeCe McDonald

Writes From Prison

About Trayvon Martin

CeCe McDonald supportcece.wordpress.com

>via: http://colorlines.com/archives/2013/08/cece_mcdonald_from_prison_the_injustice_system_has_failed_us_again.html

__________________________

June 2, 2013

The CeCe McDonald Story:

Was She Fighting Back

or Committing Murder?

CeCe McDonald. Personal photo.    Originally published 08/21/2013. Sometimes things go terribly wrong. Let’s say you’re walking with friends through your neighborhood late at night, on your way to pick up a few things from the store. You pass a handful of people smoking outside a rowdy bar. They do not like you. They do not like the way you look. They do not like your body or what you do with it. They say things, things you have heard before, things that question whether you should be on this street or even on this earth. You could ignore them and keep walking. You could, like you have done on so many nights, just let them say these things. You could silently agree that this street belongs to these people and you do not belong here and move on. You could stick up for yourself and for your friends and for people like you. And then the people saying these things could get angrier. You could get angrier too. Someone could get hurt, someone could get killed—you, or maybe someone else, and either way your life would change forever. Everything might go wrong and when it’s over your cheek might be sliced all the way through by a beer glass and a man might bleed to death on the sidewalk before paramedics can save him. And if he died at your hands and the court doesn’t believes it was self-defense you could go to prison for a very long time. On a June night in 2011, a group outside South Minneapolis’s Schooner Tavern reportedly accosted CeCe McDonald and her friends with a barrage of racist, anti-gay and transphobic abuse. McDonald, a young African-American transgender woman, objected. Their argument escalated into a brawl. When it was over, McDonald needed eleven stitches. And a middle-aged, straight white man named Dean Schmitz lie dead. Hennepin County charged CeCe McDonald with homicide in the death of Dean Schmitz. She claimed it had been self-defense—and a legion of transgender activists and other supporters stood by her even after she took a plea deal. Two Lives Converge CeCe McDonald was born in Chicago in 1989, with a male body and the name Chrishaun Reed McDonald. At 14, with her family’s support, she started doing something that felt more comfortable to her: She began regularly dressing and living as a woman. By the time she was arrested for the alleged murder of Dean Schmitz in Minneapolis, at 23, McDonald was undergoing hormone treatments to continue her transformation. McDonald had been supporting herself by working in a café while she studied fashion design at Minneapolis Community and Technical College. And she was helping out others: McDonald lived with and helped support four other gay or transgender African-American youth. A young leader in Minneapolis’s transgender community, McDonald—nicknamed “Honey Bea” by friends—had plenty of experience with bullying and with street harassment. She’d developed both courage and poise and seemed to know how to deal with the big-mouths who gave her trouble for being black or queer. She spoke out for herself and people like her on her blog. Cece McDonald didn’t have much in common with Dean Schmitz, a heterosexual white man more than 20 years her senior. Initial reports painted Schmitz, a 47-year-old Richfield resident, as a beloved family man murdered by a then-unnamed assailant. His four sons told reporters that he was a generous man, always trying to help others. His ex-wife, Tammy Williams, mourned his violent death. Once details came out that suggested Dean Schmitz was among a group of middle-aged whites who verbally attacked a group of black and transgendered youth that fateful night, the sympathetic reports dried up. There isn’t much on the public record about Schmitz’s life or personality, but he had a long record of trouble (as did Chrishaun McDonald— the Minnesota Judicial Branch website lists the records for both,) including convictions for fifth-degree assault and domestic assault. And it would become known that he had methamphetamine, opiates, and Benzoylecgognine (a by-product of mixing alcohol and cocaine) in his system the night of his death, substances that may have increased a tendency toward combative behavior. Later reports on Schmitz quote his brother, Charles Pelfrey, who suggested that Schmitz was a moody, angry man who, in the wrong mood, might very well have let loose a barrage of slurs against minorities. Even more damningly, word got out that the Hennepin county medical examiner had noticed that Schmitz’s corpse bore not just a tattoo of the word “outlaw” on his back—but a swastika tattoo on his chest. Pelfrey excuses his brother’s tattoo as just a relic of his prison-time strategic alliance with a white supremacist group. But McDonald’s allies would cite this as evidence of Schmitz’s hostility toward people like her, something that would prompt her to feel she needed to act in self-defense. Authorities disagreed. Some Words, a Street Fight, a Death CeCe McDonald’s injury. Personal photo.   Just after midnight Sunday morning, June 5, 2011, CeCe McDonald was walking toward Lake Street to pick up some things at a 24-hour branch of Minnesota grocery chain Cub Foods. With her were her roommate Latavia Taylor, Larry Tyaries Thomas, Zavawn Smith and Roneal Harris. As they walked the half-mile to the store, a police car pulled up alongside them, and an officer demanded to know what these young black people were up to. The cops then followed them a few blocks before turning away. Two women and a man, each white and middle-aged, were smoking in front of the Schooner Tavern, a divey neighborhood bar at 29th Street East and 27th Avenue South. As McDonald and her friends got closer, the older group began harassing them One of the women, Dean Schmitz’s girlfriend, Jenny Thoreson, would later say that “something about their walk”  prompted her group to say something “derogatory” about McDonald and her friends.  Schmitz’s ex-girlfriend, Molly Flaherty, would tell City Pages about the “booty shorts and tank top” worn by one of the young people, bizarrely adding,  ”He looked like he was ready to go to a recital.” Latavia Taylor later told the Star Tribune that Dean Schmitz had asked, “Did you think you were going to rape somebody in those girl clothes?” And McDonald reported that they referred to those in her group as “faggots,”  ”chicks with dicks” and other racial epithets. As the group got closer, things got more heated. According to Thoreson’s interview with City Pages, Flaherty shouted, “I’ll take you on, bitch.” Then one of the women allegedly swung a beer glass into McDonald’s face. A full-on brawl apparently ensued as other patrons joined the fray, including Flaherty’s boyfriend, David Crandell. When it was over, Dean Schmitz was bleeding through a short but deep chest wound. Gary Gilbert, working security for the Schooner Tavern that night, called 911 to report that Schmitz was injured.  Paramedics were unable to save him; Dean Schmitz died at the scene. Taylor, Smith and Harris had already fled, boarding a bus. McDonald and Thomas left the scene too, continuing in the direction of the grocery store.  Gilbert followed them, still on his cell phone and describing McDonald to the 911 disptacher. McDonald flagged down cops in the Cub Foods parking lot. CeCe McDonald was bleeding heavily from her face. The woman’s beer glass had cut through her cheek and into the roof of her mouth, neatly slicing a salivary gland. She was brought to Hennepin County Medical Center, where she needed 11 stitches. The 40-year-old white woman involved in the fracas was treated at the same hospital as McDonald. Press accounts don’t indicate which woman, or whether she was the one who hit McDonald with the glass. McDonald was the only one charged in the fight. Hennepin County decided that, to avoid any conflict of interest on its part, their colleagues in Washington County (a largely white suburban and exurban area that, incidentally, includes Michele Bachman’s congressional district) would handle any case against the woman wielding the glass. In May, 2012, the Washington County Attorney’s Office filed two felony charges against Molly Flaherty: second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and third-degree assault causing substantial bodily harm. Her case is ongoing. There would be some initial confusion over exactly what happened that night, but police immediately focused on McDonald as the suspect in Schmitz’s death. Self-Defense, a Cover-Up, of Homicide? Once the deep laceration on her face was stitched up, CeCe McDonald met briefly with Sgt. John Holthusen and Sgt. Christopher Gaiters of the Minneapolis Police Department’s homicide unit. Three hours later, they saw her again for questioning; meanwhile, she says, she was not given the opportunity to make any calls. Sgt. Gaiters confirmed that McDonald was neither drunk nor in too much pain to undergo the interrogation. The 18-year veteran of the Minneapolis Police Department says that McDonald understood the reading of her Miranda rights, that she waived her right to remain silent, and that she did not request an attorney. During later pretrial hearings, McDonald’s attorney, Hersch Izek, asserted that McDonald was in no condition to be questioned that night; Gaiters countered that McDonald had seemed competent and articulate, though her facial injuries made it hard for her to talk. Gaiters recalled that McDonald alternately laughed and cried during the interrogation, and that she acted out the alleged crime for the sergeants. During her initial questioning, McDonald told cops that she’d pulled a pair of fabric scissors out of her purse to scare off Schmitz when he came at her after the fight had seemed to have cooled down; when he rushed her, he ran into the scissors, she said. According to this first scenario, McDonald did kill Schmitz, but accidentally, and in self-defense. Later, though, McDonald would write to the Star Tribune and tell the newspaper that this confession was a panicked mistake, made as she loyally tried  to cover up for the unnamed friend who she says actually stabbed Schmitz. One of those present that night, McDonald’s boyfriend Larry Tyaries Thomas, would back her up on that theory. Thomas said that he tried to pull McDonald away from the argument when he saw that she was bleeding—and that, when he looked back, one of their friends was running from the scene. Thomas claimed that the friend later told them that he’d accidentally stabbed Schmitz when Schmitz fell on the blade he was carrying (the murder weapon has never been found). Another friend, Zavawn Smith, claimed to have recorded a video of this unidentified accidental killer’s confession on his cell phone. But McDonald later reverted to the self-defense claim. Police, though, already had the theory that prosecutors would push. A witness told them that Schmitz had grabbed McDonald to pull her away from a woman during the fight, then backed away, saying “You stabbed me.” The witness alleged that McDonald replied, “Yes, I did.” Prosecutors didn’t think this scenario sounded like self-defense; they mounted a case against McDonald. Solitary Confinement Cece McDonald was charged with second-degree murder put in solitary confinement  after her interrogation.  Solitary is often used as punishment, and it can be psychologically harrowing; but authorities, insisting that it was for her own protection, overruled McDonald’s repeated requests to be returned to the general population. After a month, she was transferred to a male psychiatric unit. She spent another week in solitary in September. Authorities never acceded to her request to be housed with female prisoners. McDonald and her supporters say that, despite complaining of headaches and ear and eye pain, she was refused medical treatment for an extended period. After two months, she saw a doctor for follow-up on the lacerated salivary gland; by then she reportedly had a golf-ball-sized swelling in her cheek. The Legal Rights Center took her case. The nonprofit organization has offered free legal help to low-income clients since 1970. According to executive director Michael Friedman, the LRC strives to help change its clients lives, not just get them off their charges. They’ll only take on homicide cases like McDonald’s if the full staff agrees to support the potential client. Legal Rights Center unanimously agreed to take McDonald on, and Hersch Izek became her lawyer. In September, Judge Daniel Moreno lowered McDonald’s bail from $150,000 to $75,000, and by October 4, 2011, McDonald’s supporters had raised the $7500 bond that released her to house arrest. But things quickly went downhill. Prosecutors offered her McDonald a deal: Rather than face trial for second-degree murder, she could plead guilty to first-degree manslaughter and serve just seven years in prison. She refused the plea bargain. And on October 6, days after her release to house arrest, prosecutors added a second charge of second-degree murder, this one “second-degree intentional murder.”  Each of these two charges could damn her to as much as 40 years in prison if she were found guilty in court. Friedman and the Legal Rights Center claimed that prosecutors were retaliating for McDonald’s refusal to take a plea. Then, McDonald’s parole officer suspected her of tampering with her electronic monitoring bracelet (supporters contend that this may have been a mechanical error)—and she failed one of her drug screenings, testing positive for marijuana on December 29th. With a bench warrant issued for her arrest, she turned herself in on January 4, 2012. Judge Moreno set a dauntingly steep bail: $500,000. McDonald’s trial was almost four months off, and she’d be in jail until then. But media interest and public support were mounting. Community Support CeCe support flyer. Source: freececemcdonald.tumblr.com    Interest in the homicide case against CeCe McDonald made a slow start. Local papers initially focused on the victim, Dean Schmitz , and when the accused first came into view, the transgender woman confused the press. For example, a June 7, 2011 City Pages article referred to Chrishaun McDonald as a 23-year-old man. (Many sources would continue to refer to McDonald as “Chrishaun” rather than “CeCe”. While “CeCe” was the name she used, “Chrishaun” was her birthname and remained her legal name.) By June 14, City Pages was just clear enough in its grasp of the situation to describe McDonald with this confusing sentence: “Although 23-year-old McDonald is being charged as a man, he’s transgender.” Early Star Tribune articles carefully avoided choosing a pronoun and making a gender decision,  instead repeatedly referring to McDonald as “a person in transition from a man to a woman”; a later Star Tribune article specifically noting that McDonald undergoes female hormone treatments still used the pronoun “he.” The Minnesota Transgender Health Coalition and the Minneapolis-based Trans Youth Support Network came to McDonald’s defense. The organizations’ representatives—most visibly, Trans Youth Support Network’s Katie Burgess—made themselves available in interviews with both the mainstream and gay- or –transgender-oriented press, clarifying McDonald’s situation and frequently citing the high rates of assault on transgender youth, both on the streets and in jail. And they galvanized support for McDonald around the US. Meanwhile, McDonald’s family and friends reported that they were being harassed by people connected with Dean Schmitz. They recounted threatening phone calls, and said that people they recognized from the Schooner Tavern had thrown bottles at them from a car, yelling at them to “go back to Africa.” On April 19, 2012, McDonald’s supporters delivered a 15,000-signature petition to Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman, asking that he recognize that McDonald acted in self-defense and drop the charges. Among McDonald’s supporters were Leslie Feinberg (author of seminal transgender memoir Stone Butch Blues), Kate Bornstein (Gender Outlaw and Queer and Pleasant Danger), Minnie Bruce Pratt (S/he), and Dean Spade (of Seattle University Law School and the Sylvia Rivera Law Project), Minneapolis City Council member Cam Gordon and Minnesota State Representatives Susan Allen and Karen Clark. McDonald’s supporters in the Trans Youth Support Network also planned a dance party in front of Freeman’s office on April 26. But Freeman wasn’t changing his mind; as he saw it, McDonald had simply killed a man, and her trial was set for April 30, 2012. Freeman continued to maintain that it wasn’t self defense. Schmitz wasn’t the one who’d hit McDonald with the glass, he pointed out. And nothing stopped McDonald from running away from the scene at any time. A Decision CeCe McDonald prison photo. Source: doc.state.mn.us    Pretrial hearings in April 2012 culminated in some rulings that crippled CeCe McDonald’s defense. Judge Moreno ruled that the defense couldn’t present Dean Schmitz’s swastika tattoo in the proceedings—McDonald couldn’t see it, he said, so it wasn’t relevant to that night’s events. Moreno also indicated that he’d permit an academic as an expert witness but not an activist—the defense had to drop their plan to have Rebecca Wagner testify, and they settled instead on the University of Minnesota’s Cesar Gonzalez. Even then, Judge Moreno ruled, the expert witness could testify only regarding the definition of the word “transgender”, but not about, for example, the high incidence of hate crimes against transgendered persons—something that  defense claimed contributed to an atmosphere that led McDonald to fear for her life. Furthermore, Judge Moreno banned any reference to Dean Schmitz’s record of violence against even people in his own family. The prosecution, however, was free to cite an old bounced check of McDonald’s as evidence of her unreliability that could negate her own testimony. In the end it didn’t matter. Prosecutors presented a second, more generous plea deal, and the Legal Rights Center team encouraged McDonald to accept a second-degree manslaughter plea. She had a choice: Do you keep fighting, insist you acted in self-defense, put your family through a trial, and risk 40 years in prison? Or do you step back, give in, and accept an expected 41 months? CeCe McDonald took the plea (the transcript can be read here.) To do so she had to concede that she’d acted unreasonably in using scissors as a dangerous weapon against an unarmed man, and give up claims of self-defense or accidental harm. Dean Spade of the Sylvia Rivera Law Project has estimated that, with time served and good behavior, CeCe McDonald may have as little as 20 months left to serve. But the second-degree homicide will follow her the rest of her life On June 4, 2012, Judge Moreno handed down the expected 41-month sentence. McDonald received credit for the 275 days she spent in jail, but not the three months she spent under home monitoring. She is currently inmate 238072 at Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud, a men’s prison.   +++++++++++++++ 1 Dead, 1 Arrested after Stabbing in Minneapolis (2011, June 6). WCCO,http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/06/05/1-dead-1-arrested-after-bar-fight-in-mpls/, retrieved 4/23/12. Anderson-Minshall, Diane (2012, April 20). Fighting for Her Life: Transgender Woman Charged with Murder. The Advocate,http://www.advocate.com/Crime/Fighting_for_her_Life_Trans_Woman_Charged_With_Murder/, retrieved 4/23/12. Annabelle, Jessica (2012, February 23). Commentary: Free CeCe. Lavender Magazine,http://www.lavendermagazine.com/our-affairs/commentary-free-cece/, retrieved 4/23/12. Broverman, Neil (2012, May 2). After Horrific Fight Leaves Man Dead, Trans Woman CeCe McDonald Accepts Guilty Plea. Advocate, http://www.advocate.com/crime/2012/05/02/accused-trans-woman-cece-mcdonald-accepts-second-degree-manslaughter-plea, retrieved 5/2/12. CeCe McDonald: Black, Transgender Woman Faces Murder Trial for What Supporters Call Self-Defense. Democracy Now!,http://www.democracynow.org/2012/4/27/cece_mcdonald_black_transgender_woman_faces, retrieved 4/27/12. CeCe McDonald, Minnesota Transgender Woman, Please Guilty in Manslaughter Case Despite Supporters’ Defense (2012, May 2). Huffington Post,http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/02/cece-mcdonald-minnesota-transgender-woman-manslaughter_n_1472078.html., retrieved 5/2/12. Cox, Laverne (2012, April 9). Jenny Talackova Can Compete but the Fight Against Tran Justice Rages On. Huffington Post, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/laverne-cox/jenna-talackova-can-compe_b_1413062.html, retrieved 4/22/12. Gebhard, Kris and  Lex Horan (2012, April 26).  Hennepin County Attornry Michael Freeman’s Aggressive Prosecution of CeCe McDOnald. 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Huffington Post, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mara-keisling/reflections-on-a-national_b_1437692.html, retrieved 4/22/12. King, Jamilah (2012, May 2). CeCe McDonald Pleads Guilty to Second-Degree Murder. Colorlines,http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/05/report_cece_mcdonald_takes_plea_deal_in_minneapolis_murder_case.html, retrieved 5/2/12. King, Jamilah (2012, May 2). Supporters Stand in Solidarity for CeCe McDonald Murder Trial. Colorlines, http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/05/cece_mcdonald_trial.html, retrieved 5/2/12. Leger, Tom (2012, May 2). Dean Spade Speaks on CeCe McDonald Trial. Pretty Queer,http://www.prettyqueer.com/2012/05/02/dean-spade-speaks-on-cece-mcdonald-trial/, retrieved 5/9/12. Lentsch, Kate (2012, May 2). Student On Trial for Second-Degree Murder; Claims Self-Defense. City College News, http://citycollegenews.com/2012/05/02/student-on-trial-for-second-degree-murder-claims-self-defense-hate-crime/, retrieved 5/2/12. Mannix, Andy (2012, May 9). CeCe McDonald Murder Trial. City Pages,http://www.citypages.com/2012-05-09/news/cece-mcdonald-murder-trial/, retrieved 5/10/12. Mullen, Mike (2011, June 25). Transgender Suspect Chrishaun McDonald Didn’t Kill Schmitz, Witnesses Claim. City Pages,http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/06/hrishaun_mcdonald_dean_schmitz.php, retrieved 4/22/12. Norfleet, Nicole (2012, April 27). A Day of Protests at Jail. Star Tribune,http://www.startribune.com/local/blogs/149160775.html, retrieved 4/27/12. Powell, Joy (2012, May 2). Plea Deal Ends Protests Over Murder Charge. Star Tribune,http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/149864755.html, retrieved 5/11/12. Regan, Sheila (2012, May 2).  CeCe McDonald Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter. Twin Cities Daily Planet, http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2012/05/02/cece-mcdonald-pleads-guilty-manslaughter, retrieved 5/2/12. Regan, Sheila (2011, December 5).  CeCe McDonald Goes to Court—Hearing on Miranda Rights in Minneapolis. Twin Cities Daily Planet, http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2011/12/05/cece-mcdonald-goes-court-hearing-miranda-rights-minneapolis, retrieved 4/23/12. Rosenblum, Gail (2011, September 28).  Murder Case Becomes a Gauge of Progress for Transgender. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/130748503.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Simons, Abby (2011, December 6). Defendant in Minneapolis Stabbing Death Now Says it was Self-Defense. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/135050178.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Simons, Abby (2011, October 7).  Attorney for Minneapolis Transgender Suspect Says New Charge is ‘Retaliation.’ Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/131325654.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Simons, Abby (2011, July 11).  Second Weapon Raises Questions in Minneapolis Murder Case. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/125379983.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Support CeCe McDonald, http://supportcece.wordpress.com/, retrieved 4/23/12. Van Denburg, Hart (2011, June 27). Chrishaun McDonald Says Transgender Status Means Unfair Murder Trial Ahead. City Pages,http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/06/chrishaun_mcdonald_transgender_homicide_trial.php, retrieved 4/22/12. Van Denburg, Hart (2011, June 14). Chrishaun , Dean Schmitz’s Alleged Killer, Allegedly Reacted to Transgender Slure. City Pages,http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/06/chrishaun_mcdonald_dean_schmitzs_accused_killer_transgender.php, retrieved 4/23/12. Van Denburg, Hart (2011, June 7). Chrishaun Reed McDonald Charged in Stabbing Death of Dean Schmitz. City Pages,http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/06/chrishaun_reed_mcdonald_charged_with_murdering_dean_schmitz.php, retrieved 4/22/12. Van Denburg, Hart (2011, June 6). Dean Schmitz Stabbed to Death Outside Schooner Tavern. City Pages,http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/06/dean_schmitz_stabbed_to_death_outside_schooner_tavern.php, retrieved 4/22/12. Walsh, Paul (2011, June 27).  Transgender Advocates Defend Accused Killer of Bar Patron. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/124612343.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Walsh, Paul (2011, June 13).  Witness: Slain Minneapolis Bar Patron’s Gay-Bashing Remark Ignited Melee. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/123777049.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Walsh, Paul (2011, June 8).  Minneapolis Stabbing Victim Ran Into Scissors, Suspect Says. Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com/local/west/123370453.html, retrieved 4/23/12. Wasserman, Scott (2011, July 7). Man Faces Murder Charge in Minneapolis Bar Stabbing. My Fox 9, http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/news/crime/man-faces-murder-charge-in-minneapolis-bar-stabbing-jun-7-2011, retrieved 4/23/12. Yuen, Laura (2012, May 2).  Transgender Woman Pleads Guilty to Second-Degree Manslaughter. Minnesota Public Radio, http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/05/02/cece-mcdonald-manslaughter-guilty-plea/, retrieved 5/2/12. Yuen, Laura (2012, April 27).  Judge Will Rule if Tattoo is Allowable Evidence in Murder Trial. Minnesota Public Radio, http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/04/27/chrishaun-mcdonald-trial/, retrieved 4/27/12.   >via: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/blog/article/the-cece-mcdonald-story-was-she-fighting-back-or-committing-murder/3/index.html