Key Points Summary โ Transgender stabs postal worker
- Transgender woman Jaia Cruz fatally stabbed postal worker Ray Hodges
- Crime occurred inside the Harlem deli during a dispute over a line
- Cruz claimed Hodges insulted her gender identity before stabbing
- Plea deal downgraded murder charge to manslaughter
- The victimโs family erupted in court, furious over the lenient sentence
Transgender Stabs Postal Worker After Deli Argument
A transgender woman who brutally killed a postal worker inside a Harlem bodega has been sentenced to just 15 years behind bars โ and the victimโs family says itโs a disgrace.
Jaia Cruz, 24, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the death of Ray Hodges, a 36-year-old USPS employee and father of two. Cruz had initially been charged with second-degree murder for the January 2 stabbing.
But prosecutors struck a plea deal in April, enraging Hodgesโ loved ones. โThis is pure evil,โ said the mother of Hodgesโ children, slamming the judge for allowing the deal.
Victimโs Family Slams Court: โHe Deserved Betterโ
The tragic encounter happened inside Joeโs Deli Grocery when Cruz allegedly cut in line. Hodges confronted her, and Cruz responded with deadly violence, stabbing him to death.
In court, Cruzโs lawyer claimed Hodges had made a slur about her gender identity before the attack. The defense also requested that Cruz be sent to a womenโs prison due to ongoing gender-transition treatments.
But to Hodgesโ family, none of it mattered. They wore โJustice for Rayโ shirts to the sentencing and shouted โItโs a boy!โ in protest. โYou get broken families,โ one relative yelled. โWe are the proof.โ
Judge Calls It โSenseless,โ Victimโs Family Sees Injustice
Judge Gregory Carro acknowledged the violence as a โsenseless killing over a trivial misunderstanding.โ But he added that proving Cruzโs intent to kill was difficult โ a statement that seemed to justify the plea bargain.
Still, the light sentence after such a vicious act has shaken faith in the justice system. Cruz, who has a violent criminal history, had been free when she attacked Hodges in broad daylight.
Now sheโll serve just 15 years, while a family mourns a father taken too soon. The phrase โtransgender stabs postal workerโ has become a lightning rod for outrage across the city.