South Carolina man pleads guilty to obstruction of justice in murder of Black transgender woman

A South Carolina man pled guilty Thursday to obstruction of justice charges in an investigation into the murder of a Black transgender woman.

State authorities said they found that the defendant, Xavier Pinckney, provided “false and misleading information” pertaining to the 2019 death of 24-year-old Pebbles LaDime “Dime” Doe. 

Pinckney, 24, faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for his efforts to conceal both phone and text calls that he made to Doe on the same day she was killed. Court documents also revealed that Pinckney lied about seeing Daqua Ritter, 26, who allegedly shot Doe on Aug. 4, 2019, on the morning of her killing.  

“The defendant is being held accountable for trying to obstruct an investigation into the tragic murder of a Black transgender woman,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said.

“Hate has no place in South Carolina,” U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina Adair F. Boroughs said. “The senseless murder of Dime Doe, and any act of violence against the LGBTQI+ community, confirms the need to confront hate in all its forms. Our office will continue to pursue justice for those impacted by bias-motivated crimes.”

LGBTQ civil rights organization the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) reported that at least 22 transgender and gender nonconforming people have been killed so far in 2023.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s annual crime report for 2022 found that anti-LGBTQ hate crimes rose dramatically from the previous year, with a 13.8 percent increase in reports based on sexual orientation and a 32.9 percent jump in reported hate crimes based on gender identity.

This uptick in violent attacks has also coincided with a rise in anti-LGBTQ legislation. According to the HRC, more than 550 bills have been introduced in 43 states, and more than 80 have been signed into law. 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of South Carolina Brook Andrews, Ben Garner and Elle Klein, as well as trial attorney Andrew Manns of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section, will be prosecuting the case against Pinckney.