First US federal hate crime conviction for gender identity in SC [Video]

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina is one of the only two states that has not enacted statewide hate crime legislation. Because of this, officials from the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI participated in Pride Festival events in Columbia.

“We feel all the more importance to educate members of the community of the federal statutes that we have and that we use to prosecute individuals for bias-related crimes,” Attorney Ben Garner said.

Daqua Ritter was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a Black transgender woman, Dime Doe.

Ritter killed Doe in August of 2019 in Allendale County, South Carolina. Prosecutors successfully argued that the murder was committed because of Doe’s gender identity.

Garner, who helped prosecute the case, said laws must be in place to protect the community.

“Right now, …