MOBILE, Ala. — A Mobile man accused of shooting a 17-year-old transgender teen to death in 2024 pleaded guilty to murder Monday, Sept. 28, and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. The teen’s mother said she had hoped the case would go to trial and a jury would hand down a longer sentence.
Carl Mitchell Washington Jr., 22, entered the plea as prosecutors and defense attorneys were about to begin selecting a jury, according to court records and those involved in the case.
The plea deal
Under the agreement, Mobile County Circuit Judge Brandy Hambright dismissed a second charge of shooting into an occupied vehicle and sentenced Washington to 25 years in prison on the murder charge.
The victim, who was assigned male at birth and whose legal name was Brandon Thomas, began identifying as female in seventh grade and went by the name Tayy.
Case at a glance
- Defendant: Carl Mitchell Washington Jr., 22, of Mobile
- Plea: Guilty to murder
- Sentence: 25 years in prison
- Dismissed charge: Shooting into an occupied vehicle
- Judge: Mobile County Circuit Judge Brandy Hambright
- Victim: Tayy Thomas, 17
- Date of shooting: Shortly before 3:30 a.m., May 7, 2024, on Darwood Drive in Mobile
A mother’s disappointment
Tayy’s mother, Victoria Thomas, said she wanted the case decided by a jury.
“I’m disappointed that he took the plea deal,” she said. “I really preferred a trial because I think they would have given him more time. I think he deserved more time. My child was 17, and (Washington) knew exactly what he was doing, had plenty of time to change his mind, and he didn’t.”
In Alabama, murder is a Class A felony that carries a sentence of 10 years to life in prison, with a longer mandatory minimum when a firearm is used. Plea agreements allow both sides to avoid the uncertainty of a trial; prosecutors secure a conviction, while defendants typically receive a set sentence.
Prosecutors: A ‘senseless murder’
The Mobile County District Attorney’s Office called the killing a “senseless murder.”
“Our thoughts remain with Brandon’s family, and we hope this resolution allows them to close this chapter and begin to move forward,” the office said in a statement.
The Mobile County Public Defender’s Office, which represented Washington, declined to comment.
What happened on Darwood Drive
The shooting happened shortly before 3:30 a.m. on May 7, 2024, on Darwood Drive. Mobile police said officers responded to reports of shots fired and found a vehicle riddled with bullets. Police arrested Washington within hours.
Court records indicate Tayy suffered nearly 20 gunshot wounds.
Victoria Thomas said her child and Washington had a dating relationship that Washington wanted to keep secret. She said the two argued that night and that Washington lured Tayy to Darwood Drive and shot her.
Thomas described her understanding of Tayy’s final moments, saying her child tried to find safety at neighbors’ homes.
“From my understanding, the neighbor was deaf and didn’t hear my baby knocking at the door,” Thomas said. “And then the neighbor across the street heard my child and proceeded to open the door and try to get my child to run to her house. And he saw my child running and ran down the street and gunned him down in the yard.”
‘The entire family accepted her’
Thomas said Tayy was bullied at school, but that her family accepted her for who she was.
She said the loss was especially difficult for Tayy’s twin brother, Braedan Thomas. Braedan pleaded guilty earlier this year to a federal charge of possessing an illegal machine gun conversion device. He admitted to appearing in a social media video, recorded in a downtown Mobile parking lot on Joe Cain Day, that mocked the death of a friend of Washington.
Victoria Thomas said her daughter’s killing affected her son’s behavior.
“My son was picked with online based on his twin being transgender, and so he feared for his life,” she said. “It’s not the first time, you know, they’ve said something about it.”
Violence against transgender people
Advocacy groups that track deaths of transgender and gender-nonconforming people in the United States have documented dozens of killings in recent years. Those groups have reported that a large share of victims are young, that most are killed with guns and that many are killed by someone they know, including partners and acquaintances. Advocates say fear of stigma can lead some relationships to be kept hidden, which can leave young transgender people isolated when conflicts arise.
Young people who are LGBTQ and in crisis can reach The Trevor Project’s trained counselors 24 hours a day by calling 1-866-488-7386 or texting START to 678-678. Anyone in immediate danger should call 911.
Remembering Tayy
Family members have described Tayy as a teenager who was loved and accepted at home. Monday’s plea brings the criminal case to a close more than two years after her death, but her mother made clear that the sentence does not settle her grief or her belief that justice fell short.
Washington will serve his sentence in the custody of the Alabama Department of Corrections.