Killer of Minnesota trans woman Savannah Williams sentenced to 30 years

A Minnesota man convicted last month of shooting and killing a trans woman in the head only moments after she completed a sex act on him was sentenced to over 30 years in jail on Wednesday, local NBC affiliate KARE reported.

Damarean Kaylon Bible, 25, was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Savannah Ryan Williams, 38. Her lifeless body was found in a Minneapolis courtyard around 9 a.m. on November 29, 2023, with a single gunshot wound to the head, according to court documents. On Wednesday, Fourth Judicial District Judge Juan Hoyos sentenced Bible to 367 months in prison, with at least two-thirds of that sentence served before he becomes eligible for parole.

“This senseless act of violence against a Native and Cuban transgender woman has left a family without a daughter, a partner without their person, and a community without the vibrant light that Savannah uniquely brought to every room she was in,” Mary Moriarty, Hennepin County Attorney, said at a press conference on Wednesday, KARE reported.

Moriarty said prosecutors investigated the case as a hate crime, but did not feel they had the evidence to secure a conviction.

The case shocked the local transgender community. Witnesses told police they heard a gunshot at 5:45 a.m. on the day she was murdered in the courtyard where her body was found. They also reported seeing a man walk away from the scene around the same time.

Using a photo from the surveillance footage, Bible was identified to police by building management and taken into custody. Police say a subsequent search of his apartment turned up multiple firearms, including a handgun with no serial number and a rifle.

Bible at first denied involvement in the killing, but investigators say he confessed after they showed him the surveillance footage.

Bible reportedly told investigators he was walking past a bus shelter where Williams was seated when she propositioned him for a sex act. He agreed and the two moved to the courtyard where Williams performed oral sex on Bible. During the act, though, Bible reportedly told police he became “suspicious” of Williams, and that he shot her in the head from a few inches away immediately after the act had been completed.

In a phone call with his parents that was recorded by authorities, Bible also reportedly confessed to the crime, saying he had “just murdered someone” and he was sorry and “knew he was not god” but that he “had to do it.”

Despite his confession, Bible went to trial and was convicted by a jury on August 27.

On Wednesday, Bible apologized to Williams's family.

“I completely apologize,” Bible said before sentencing, according to Minnesota Public Radio. “I feel like I do need to sit down and do some time.”