Man pleads guilty in 2018 shooting of transgender woman in Detroit

The suspect charged in the fatal shooting in 2018 of a transgender woman in Detroit has pleaded guilty, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced Thursday.

Albert Weathers of Sterling Heights entered the plea to second-degree murder and felony firearm, the Prosecutor's Office said. That was in addition to a sentence agreement of eight years for second-degree murder and two years for felony firearm.

Weathers "was given a bond in the case over the prosecutor’s objection and was not incarcerated while awaiting trial," Maria Miller, a spokeswoman for the Prosecutor's Office, told The Detroit News. "With courts not having jury trials during the pandemic, this slowed things down. One the courts re-opened the prisoners in jail took priority on the trial docket. That is why his case took longer to go through the system."

Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 8 before Judge Bridget Hathaway.

Weathers was charged days after Kelly Stough was found dead Dec. 7, 2018, near East McNichols and Brush.

She died of a single gunshot wound in her left underarm.

The 36-year-old Detroit native, also known as Keanna Mattel, performed in the city's ballroom scene.

Weathers, a pastor, told investigators Stough tried to rob him after he dropped his daughter off at school.

Authorities have alleged the shooting stemmed from a dispute over payment for sex services.

A sex worker testified in court in 2019 that Weathers routinely sought out dates in the Six Mile and Woodward area.

“The transgender community is among the most marginalized communities in this country. The Wayne County Prosecutors Office is committed to that not being the case in Wayne County. Today, yet another step was taken to protect our trans community members," Prosecutor Kym Worthy said Thursday.

The case had been assigned to a special prosecutor from the Fair Michigan Justice Project, a collaboration between the Prosecutor’s Office and Fair Michigan Foundation Inc. The foundation helps state law enforcement officers and prosecutors solve major crimes against people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.

"This guilty plea hopefully brings a long-awaited sense of closure to the family and friends of Kelly Stough. Further, it demonstrates a firm commitment to justice from the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office and our team at the Fair Michigan Justice Project,” said FMJP President Alanna Maguire.

Stough's mother "acknowledged that she agreed and was grateful for the resolution in the case," the Prosecutor's Office said.

Worthy said Stough "will not be forgotten. She mattered. We will continue to aggressively prosecute those who bring harm to this and other Wayne County communities."