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1855, Celia:
After enduring years of sexual violence, Celia, a 19-year old Missouri enslaved woman, killed her master, Robert Newsom.
Her lawyers suggested that a law permitting a woman to use deadly force to defend against sexual advances extended to enslaved as well as free women and argued self-defense.
The court deemed Celia to be property and not a person entitled to defending her life. Celia was found guilty of murder and hanged on December 21, 1855.
1975, Joan (pronounced “Jo Ann”) Little:
When Joan Little was charged with murder for killing the white prison guard who tried to sexually assault her in jail, she was acquitted. The case established a precedent for killing as self-defense against rape.
2004, Cyntoia Brown-Long:
At 16, Cyntoia was sentenced to life in prison with possibility of parole after 51 years in Tennessee. Cyntoia was trafficked by a man she believed to be her boyfriend. During an incident with a 43-year-old buyer in which she feared for her life, Cyntoia killed the buyer. Thanks to grassroots organizers drawing attention to her case, Cyntoia’s sentence was commuted to 15 years by the Tennessee governor and she was released in 2019. She is the author of a memoir entitled “Free Cyntoia”.
2010, Marissa Alexander:
Nine days after giving birth to her daughter, Marissa Alexander was confronted by her abusive husband. Fearing for her life, she fired a warning shot into a wall. No one was harmed, yet Marissa was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and sentenced to twenty years in prison. Marissa’s case drew national attention and mobilized supporters to call for a new trial, which she was ultimately granted in 2013. Rather than undergo a new trial, Marissa accepted a plea deal and was released from prison with time served. She is the founder of the Marissa Alexander Justice Project, which advocates for other survivors of violence who are criminalized for survival.
2011, CeCe McDonald:
CeCe was out with friends when they were the target of a racist and transphobic attack. Fearing for her life, CeCe fought back, and the ensuing altercation ended with one of her attackers dying from his injuries. CeCe was charged with second-degree murder, and rather than undergo a trial she ultimately accepted a plea deal to second-degree manslaughter. She was sentenced to 41 months in a men’s prison facility. After 19 months, she was released in 2014. She is an activist, public speaker, and writer, and was named to the Advocate’s “40 under 40” list in 2014.
2016, Bresha Meadows:
Fourteen-year-old Bresha Meadows of Ohio was incarcerated and faced a charge of aggravated murder for defending herself and her family against the unrelenting terror and abuse of her father. A defense campaign successfully organized to keep her in the juvenile system, and she eventually took a plea deal that allowed her to be released from jail in February 2018.
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