US set to execute 1st openly transgender woman

By Betul Yuruk

NEW YORK (AA) - The first openly transgender woman is set to be executed in the US unless she receives a pardon, the Associated Press reported Monday.

Amber McLaughlin, 49, is scheduled to die by lethal injection in the state of Missouri on Tuesday.

In 2003, then known as Scott McLaughlin, she raped and stabbed a former girlfriend to death and dumped her body in St. Louis near the Mississippi River.

Her lawyer, Larry Komp, has petitioned Missouri Governor Mike Parson for clemency.

McLaughlin, who transitioned in prison, experienced a traumatic childhood and mental health issues and has attempted suicide several times, according to the clemency petition.