Justice for Gwen
Advocate, The, Oct 11, 2005
Three years ago Michael Magidson and Jose Merel, now both 25, tied up transgender teen Gwen Araujo, beat her, and then strangled her to death at a party in Newark, Calif.
Last year a jury deadlocked in their case, but in a retrial a jury on September 12 agreed the two were guilty of second<legree murder though not of committing a hate crime. Magidson and Merel face mandatory sentences of 15 years to life in prison. The jury deadlocked on a third defendant, Jason Cazares, 25, setting up the possibility of yet a third trial.
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