Derrick Lee Banner, a 26-year-old transgender woman, was found shot to death in a vehicle on Rosetta Street in Charlotte, North Carolina, on September 12, 2017. Banner, who was also known as Derricka and "Ms. Bow Bow," was originally from New York and lived in Lenoir, North Carolina. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department responded to the scene around 3 a.m. and discovered Banner with an apparent gunshot wound.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation revealed that Banner and the suspect, 18-year-old Montavious Sanchez Berry, knew each other and had communicated on previous occasions. Berry was arrested and charged with murder, armed robbery, and shooting into an occupied vehicle. He was held without bail at the Mecklenburg County Jail. The CMPD stated that there was no evidence to suggest that Banner was killed because of her gender identity.
A search warrant released in Mecklenburg County indicated that Banner had contacted Berry to meet up for sex prior to the deadly shooting. The warrant also revealed that Banner's cellphone contained a video of her and Berry engaged in sexual activity approximately 30 minutes before the shooting occurred. Another transgender woman, who goes by Tooker, claimed to have been present during the shooting and stated that she heard Berry threaten Banner before hearing two gunshots.
Banner's death was the 20th killing of a transgender person in the United States in 2017, according to advocacy groups. The case garnered national attention, with many news outlets covering the story and highlighting the violence faced by transgender individuals, particularly transgender women of color. The CMPD consulted with the FBI during the investigation, but no further information or evidence was found to indicate that Banner's gender identity played a role in her murder.
