Teen Pleads Guilty in Beating Death

By The Associated Press

CORTEZ -- A New Mexico teen-ager pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the beating death of a 16-year-old Cortez boy.

Shaun Murphy of Farmington, N.M., entered the plea Thursday in Montezuma County District Court. Charges of first-degree murder and attempted escape were dropped.

Murphy, 18, is accused of brutally beating Fred Martinez Jr., whose body was found June 21 south of Cortez.

Murphy will be sentenced May 16. He faces between four and 48 years in prison.

Gay-rights advocates have raised the question of whether Martinez was killed because of his sexual orientation. He sometimes dressed as a girl and was considered transgendered.

Authorities have declined to call his death a hate crime.

Martinez's mother said at the hearing that she believes Murphy deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison.

"My home is so quiet without Fred," she said. "I have nobody to laugh with. I just miss him so much."

During a preliminary hearing in September, Murphy's lawyer, Pamela Brown, said Murphy was fighting in self defense the night of June 16 when he struck Martinez in the head with a rock.

http://www.gfn.com/news/story.phtml?sid=10965

Guilty Plea in Murder of Transgendered Teen
February 11, 2002
Gfn.com News

A teenager has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the beating death of a transgendered teen in Cortez, Colo.

Shaun Murphy of Farmington, N.M., entered the plea late last week in Montezuma County, Colo., district court. Murphy, 18, is accused of brutally beating Fred Martinez Jr., 16, whose body was found June 21 south of Cortez. Charges of first-degree murder and attempted escape were dropped.

Gay rights advocates have raised the issue of whether Martinez was killed because of his sexual orientation or his gender identity. Martinez often dressed like a girl and asked friends to call him "Beyoncé."

Martinez's mother said at the hearing that she believes Murphy deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison. "My home is so quiet without Fred," she said. "I have nobody to laugh with. I just miss him so much."

During a preliminary hearing in September, Murphy's lawyer, Pamela Brown, said Murphy was defending himself the night of June 16 when he struck Martinez on the head with a rock. Authorities have declined to call the murder a hate crime.

Murphy will be sentenced May 16. He faces between four and 48 years in prison.

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