Tayy Dior Thomas’ family hopes ‘justice will prevail’ in transgender Alabama teen’s death

The case against a Mobile resident charged with murdering Tayy Dior Thomas, a transgender teenager, was sent to a grand jury Tuesday.

“Hopefully justice will prevail,” Rolanda Carl, Thomas’ grandmother, said after the hearing. “This is just not a case; this was a person who was loved and cared about dearly.”

Carl Mitchell Washington Jr., 20, was charged with Thomas’ death in May. Thomas’ family said that the two were in a romantic relationship for more than a year. Washington killed Thomas, they said, out of fear their relationship would be exposed.

Washington has pleaded not guilty. He is being held without bond in Mobile Metro Jail on charges of murder and discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle.

On Tuesday, Washington chose to waive his preliminary hearing. Washington’s attorney, Robert “Bucky” Thomas, told Mobile County District Judge Spiro Cheriogotis that the evidence that would have been presented likely met the standard needed to move to grand jury.

However, Washington’s attorney made it clear that it was not an admission of guilt.

It’s unclear what, if any, charges Washington will face after the grand jury hears the case.

“There’s no way that he’s going to wiggle out of this,” Carl said.

Thomas’ death has garnered national attention from LGBTQ advocates, who are hoping the case will spark changes to Alabama’s hate crime statute. Currently, Alabama law does not provide enhanced penalties for crimes motivated by sexual orientation or gender identity, according to the NAACP.

Carmarion D. Anderson-Harvey, Alabama state director for the Human Rights Campaign, said she’s hoping the case will generate interest in changing Alabama’s statute. The Human Rights Campaign advocates for hate crime law changes, as well as implementing stronger non-discrimination laws, she said.

“It is still very important that we have those conversations to move the needle, to help those other families and those past families who have lost loved ones because of hate crimes,” Anderson-Harvey said. “The number of victims that we see annually, especially for the transgender community, is very high, particularly in the race of Black and brown individuals.”

Anderson-Harvey was present at the court hearing Tuesday, along with other local LGBTQ advocates and members of Thomas’ family.

Thomas’ death is one of 18 violent killings of a transgender or gender-expansive person that the HRC has identified in 2024 nationwide, according to a report on the nonprofit’s website.

Carl says she hopes that Thomas’ death will spark change.

“If it takes this case to bring awareness to that, of change, then I hope that it helps another family,” Carl says.

Thomas was killed May 7 on Darwood Drive in Mobile. Initial news reports, including a report from AL.com, misgendered Thomas. AL.com’s initial report was based on a police statement saying the victim was a male.

Court records refer to Thomas by her “deadname,” a term used to refer to a transgender person’s name prior to their gender transition.