Local
Jury deadlocked in trans murder case
Judge sends jurors back for further deliberations
A D.C. Superior Court jury on Wednesday announced it was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on whether two men were guilty or innocent of first-degree murder for the July 4, 2016 shooting death of transgender woman Deeniquia “Dee Dee” Dodds on a Northeast D.C. street.
But the jury disclosed through its foreperson that it found defendant Monte Johnson, 23, not guilty on seven of 15 other charges filed against him and found defendant Jolonta Little, 28, not guilty on five of the same 15 additional charges against him, including the charge of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
The jury reached just one guilty verdict, said the foreperson. Little was found guilty of a single count of carrying a pistol without a license outside of a home or business.
Judge Milton C. Lee then instructed the jury to return to the jury room to continue their deliberations and to make an earnest effort to reach verdicts on the remaining charges for which they were deadlocked.
The partial verdicts by the jury came at the conclusion of a month-long trial in which prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office argued that Little, Johnson and two other men targeted as many as seven transgender women for armed robberies along streets where female trans sex workers congregate on the night Dodds was shot.
The prosecutors, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Saunders and Ahmed Baset, told the jury Dodds was among the trans women targeted by the men in the early morning hours of July 4, 2016. The prosecutors said defendant Johnson fatally shot Dodds in the neck after she fought back when Johnson and another man implicated in the murder attempted to rob her at gunpoint.
The other man that allegedly targeted Dodds, Cyheme Hall, 23, and his brother, Shareem Hall, 25, had been charged along with Little and Johnson with first-degree murder while armed in connection with the Dodds murder. But prosecutors informed the jury at the start of the trial that the Hall brothers agreed to become cooperating witnesses for the government after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in the Dodds case.
In dramatic testimony at the trial, Cyheme Hall told the jury it was Johnson who shot Dodds in the neck at point blank range after she grabbed the barrel of his handgun as Johnson and Hall attempted to rob her on Division Ave., N.E. near where she lived. Hall testified that the plan among the men to commit robberies did not include the intent to kill anyone.
Although prosecutors presented numerous other witnesses who they said corroborated testimony by the Hall brothers, defense attorney Kevin Irving, who represents Johnson, and Brandi Harden, who represents Little, told the jury the Hall brothers were habitual liars with no credibility and anything they said in their testimony should be discounted.
The two defense attorneys pointed to what they said were inconsistencies in the Hall brothers’ testimony and noted that the Halls’ motives were aimed strictly at telling prosecutors what the prosecutors wanted to hear so they could get off with a lighter sentence.
The defense attorneys also argued repeatedly that jurors were required by law to find the defendants not guilty if they had a reasonable doubt about Johnson and Little’s guilt in any aspect of the complex circumstances surrounding the murder.
Prosecutor Saunders reminded the jury in his rebuttal argument last week that “solid” corroborating evidence linking Johnson and Little to the murder and a string of armed robberies of other trans women that took place on the night of the murder.
Among the key corroborating evidence, Saunders pointed out, was a GPS ankle bracelet that Little wore on the night of the murder stemming from a previous conviction and probation he received in an unrelated criminal case. The tracking of Little’s whereabouts that night by GPS experts placed him at the scene of three robberies Little and Johnson were charged with committing, including the scene where Dodds was shot, at the exact time those incidents occurred.
Saunders noted that prosecutors and police also tracked the cell phone conversations between Little and Johnson and the Hall brothers that they say placed them at the scene of the robberies and shooting.
In addition, Saunders pointed to recorded phone conversations played before the jury that the government obtained of Johnson talking with his girlfriend by phone while in jail awaiting trial for the Dodds murder in which prosecutors say he admitted committing the murder.
During Wednesday morning’s court session, the jury announced it found Little not guilty on seven separate counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. The jury found him guilty of a single count of carrying a pistol without a license outside of a home or business.
The jury similarly found Johnson not guilty on five counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. It did not find Johnson guilty of any charges as of Wednesday morning.
Among the charges against both men for which the jury reported it was deadlocked included felony murder while armed, conspiracy, assault with a dangerous weapon, robbery while armed, and additional counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
If the jury remains deadlocked on the charges it announced Wednesday morning it would be up to Judge Lee to decide whether to approve a possible request by prosecutors for a new trial or an expected motion by defense attorneys to dismiss the case.
District of Columbia
Mary’s House founder, CEO retires
Dr. Imani Woody played leading role in opening DC’s first home for LGBTQ seniors
The board of directors for Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC’s first official home dedicated to providing affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors, announced on July 7 that its founding president and CEO, Dr. Imani Woody, has retired.
Woody, who holds a PhD in Human Services, is credited with playing a leading role over many years in arranging both city and private funding needed to construct and operate the Mary’s House three-story building located at 401 Anacostia Road, S.E., in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood.
The house, which opened in March 2025, with a grand opening ceremony held in May 2025, includes 15 single-occupancy residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of shared communal living space.
“It is with profound gratitude and hearts full of celebration that the board of directors of Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC (MHFOA) announces the retirement of our visionary founder, Dr. Imani Woody, from her role as president and CEO,” the Mary’s House board says in a statement.
“Dr. Woody’s journey with Mary’s House began with her vision and a kitchen table gathering of women with a bold, urgent, and loving vision: to create safe, affirming, affordable housing for LGBTQ/SGL older adults in Washington, DC,” the statement says.
It adds, “What started as a dream has grown into DC’s first affordable LGBTQ+/SGL affirming communal living space for adults 60 and over, a 15-room community residence at 401 Anacostia Road in Southeast Washington.”
The statement says Woody will continue to serve on Mary’s House board.
“The board will be sharing information about the leadership transition process in the coming weeks,” the statement continues. “We are committed to honoring Dr. Woody’s legacy by ensuring Mary’s House continues to thrive and grow in faithful service to LGBTQ/SGL elders experiencing housing insecurity and isolation.”
Maryland
Va., Md., advocates brace for next fight after Supreme Court sports ruling
Neither state has statewide ban on trans student athletes
On June 30, the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for states to enforce laws barring transgender students from participating on school sports teams consistent with their gender identity, a decision LGBTQ advocates say could encourage additional restrictions across the country.
While neither Maryland nor Virginia currently has a statewide ban on trans student athletes, advocates say the decision could reshape future legislative battles and school policies throughout the region.
Directly following the case, attorneys for trans student athletes spoke out about the case and how detrimental it could be to students.
“This ruling is deeply harmful for transgender women and girls who only asked for the ability to participate in sports with their peers,” said Sasha Buchert, senior attorney and director of the Nonbinary and Transgender Rights Project for Lambda Legal, in a press release from the American Civil Liberties Union.
The next step is figuring out how states will move forward, specifically in Maryland and Virginia.
As of right now, neither state has bans on trans athletes in schools. The new Supreme Court decision also does not require states to enact bans, only that bans are allowed if states or school districts choose to enforce them.
According to the ACLU, 27 states have banned trans youth from participating in school sports since 2020. Most of these states also require sex testing, which the organization says is invasive for all female athletes.
Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman said that while she has heard a lot of frustration following the decision, people are ready to take action.
“Families, parents and youth have lived through disappointing changes to the Virginia Department of Education’s model policies for the treatment of transgender students, and the Virginia High School League’s decades-old policy that allowed transgender students an opportunity to play sports with their friends,” Rahaman said in a statement to the Washington Blade.
She believes they are not ready to give up this fight quite yet.
As of now, trans and nonbinary students are protected under Virginia law, and Rahaman wants that to continue.
“This ruling will likely embolden right-wing members of the General Assembly to pursue trans athlete bans, and we will continue to defeat every bill like we have the past five legislative sessions. Now is our time to be proactive,” Rahaman said.
She also calls upon Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger to defend trans youth in Virginia from what she describes as bullies and to continue to stand up to federal attacks on the trans community in general.
For trans students, Rahaman wants to ensure that they continue to know that they belong and have a place in school sports.
“To the transgender young people watching this decision unfold: you belong on your team, in your school, in your community, and here in Virginia. This ruling does not change that. A single Supreme Court decision cannot define your worth or your future,” Rahaman said.
For people who may be outside the community but want to help, she encourages them to speak with trans and nonbinary people in their community, befriend the families of youth to show their support, and continue to speak up on these issues when needed.
According to ACLU of Virginia, high schooler Eliza Munshi was told she could not compete on the girls’ track team because she was trans. To prove a point, she decided to compete with the boys.
She had previously competed on the girls’s track team before her Virginia school decided to enforce the ban demanded by President Donald Trump. With pink hair and pink makeup, she decided to continue her love for the sport alongside boys. According to Munshi, her entire community rallied for her.
“I did it to prove a point. I knew I could do it. I knew it wouldn’t phase me. My gender itself and that label has been the least important part of my transition: I want to look how I want to look. I want to dress how I want to dress. If you don’t like that, then that’s not my business,” Munshi said.
DOE has launched Title IX probe against Md. school districts
In the weeks leading up to the ruling, multiple Maryland school districts were included in a Title IX probe stating that not enforcing sex-based protections guaranteed by federal law. Currently, there have been no updates on the lawsuit or the district’s decisions.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, the federal probe is based on parent complaints that the school districts were violating a specific Trump-Vance administration addition to Title IX, stating it aligned the sex-based protections “with biological reality, not ideological fantasy.”
According to FreeState Justice, an LGBTQ advocacy group in Maryland, while this is a disappointing ruling to see, they will continue to fight for trans student-athletes in Maryland and want trans youth to know that they belong.
“Every young person deserves the opportunity to participate in school and community life without being singled out because of who they are. These decisions send a harmful message to transgender youth that they are somehow less deserving of that opportunity,” said Phillip Westry, the group’s executive director.
Westry wants to make sure the community knows that their commitment to the organization has not changed and will continue to provide the same legal services they have prior and to advance policy solutions, to ensure “every LGBTQ+ Marylander can live with dignity, safety, and equal opportunity.”
Another issue brought up by trans advocates is the issue of testing women to determine whether they are biologically female or not.
According to Human Rights Watch, as of 2023, World Athletics required cis women with increased testosterone levels to undergo medical procedures to have it reduced to avoid advantages. Other forms of “sex verification” may include genetic testing, screenings of an athlete’s anatomy or chromosomes.
However, this can become detrimental because not all women have ovaries, a uterus, or XX chromosomes, meaning cisgender women could potentially be included in these bans, depending on how the specific state plans to enforce them.
Maryland
Eastern Shore school board wants an 18-and-over rule for young adult books
Classics like ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and ‘Little Women’ might be off limits to most students
By LIZ BOWIE | Somerset County’s school board is considering barring students under the age of 18 from reading any young-adult literature in school libraries, essentially restricting all but 12th graders from checking out books written for teens and tweens.
The proposed policy also calls for the superintendent to discipline librarians if “adult” reading material appears in the children’s section.
The policy defines young adult as students over 18. “Young adults are not minors and books suitable for young adults shall be placed on a separate Young Adults library section to reflect age-appropriate literature,” a draft of the policy says.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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