NOTE: One Philly official has said that Carricker is not trans. This article did not claim that Carricker is, only that they/them pronouns are used and their are pictures of Carricker cross-dressing. However, in the interest of presenting the full facts, this note has been added for context.
The mass shooter that killed five people and wounded four on Monday evening with a handgun and AR-15 style rifle while wearing body armor and a ski mask has been identified as Kimbrady Carriker, a 40-year-old Black Lives Matter activist and cross-dresser who uses “they/them” pronouns.
The Philadelphia Inquirer identified the suspect as Kimbrady Carriker on July 4th, the day after the horrific shooting, saying, “Sources identified the suspect in Monday’s mass shooting in Southwest Philadelphia as Kimbrady Carriker.”
The New York Post then did some digging on Carriker and reported what the Philadelphia Inquirer didn’t include: Carriker is both a BLM activist and a cross-dresser that uses “they/them” pronouns.
Reporting on those aspects of Carriker, the NYP reported, “On his Facebook page, Carriker posted two pictures of himself wearing a bra, a women’s top and earrings with his hair braided long in March, three months before the alleged shooting” and “He also regularly posts about supporting Black Lives Matter, including supporting workers who protested in the Strike For Black Lives in July 2020.”
Carriker’s first court hearing came on Wednesday, when “they” were charged with 11 total offenses for the mass shooting and several counts of each. In addition the murder charges, Carriker is facing attempted murder charges, reckless endangerment, aggravated assault, and carrying a firearm without a valid permit. Because of the murder charges, Carriker is currently being held without bail.
Judge Naomi Williams, commenting on the situation and Carriker, said, “Public safety is clearly an issue. There are no set conditions to ensure the safety of the community.”
Predictably, the usual suspects on the left were angry that Carriker was identified as cross-dressing and using “they/them” pronouns. For example, ABC 6 reported that Asa Khalif, a member of Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee, said that comments about photos of Carriker wearing women’s clothes are “hateful” and “misdirected.”
Adding to that, Khalif said, “The suspect has not identified themselves as trans. They have only identified themselves as male. But the language spewed out by the conservative press is violent and dangerous and targeting trans women of color. It’s rallying the community to be violent.”
And, of course, there were the usual gun control claims. For example, Philly Mayor Jim Kenney said on Tuesday that “this country needs to examine its conscience and find out how to get guns out of dangerous people’s hands.” Kenney added, “A person walking down the street with an AR-style rifle and shooting randomly at people while wearing a bulletproof vest with multiple magazines is disgraceful, but an all too common situation in America.”
ABC 6 also reported that one individual was arrested for firing a firearm at Carriker, but that individual was later released after the police determined that the shots fired were justified given the circumstances and Carriker’s actions.
A parent of one of the victims said, “You took my son. You took my baby…My message to him – you didn’t have to do what you did. Whatever thoughts, whatever was going on in your head, you should’ve gotten help. You should leave people alone and get some help.”
Featured image credit: Philadelphia Police Department
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