Transgender Lucedale man accused of assaulting transgender minor

Krishna "Kris" Maroney GCSO photo
Krishna "Kris" Maroney GCSO photo
Krishna “Kris” Maroney
GCSO photo

LUCEDALE, Mississippi (AP) — A George County grand jury has indicted a transgender man on assault charges and sex crimes against a transgender minor.

The Sun Herald reports Krishna “Kris” Maroney, 24, was indicted on eight counts of sexual battery, two counts of touching of a child for lustful purposes and two counts of aggravated domestic violence.

Maroney has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer has declined comment

The indictment states the victim had been in a relationship with Maroney, but was younger than 16.

Maroney is accused of engaging in sex acts with the victim eight times and sexually touching the minor at least twice.

The Lucedale resident is also accused of once trying to strangle the victim and once cutting the victim’s tongue with a knife.

All crimes allegedly occurred in late 2012.

George County sheriff’s Sgt. J.D. Savage said an investigation began in August after the victim came forward with the allegations.

“When you have a young victim it does take time sometimes for them to disclose these type of crimes which have been committed against them,” Savage said when asked why the case wasn’t investigated until 2015. “It’s actually normal to have a timeline like this.”

Maroney is free on $100,000 bail, and a trial is set for April 25.

Sexual battery carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years, and a charge of touching of a child for lustful purposes is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

If convicted of all the charges, Maroney could go to prison for life.

It’s the second recent criminal case involving a transgender person in the southeast Mississippi county.

Josh Vallum, a member of the Latin Kings street gang, faces a murder indictment in the beating death Mercedes Williamson, a 17-year-old transgender teen from Theodore, Alabama. Officials say Vallum beat Williamson to death with a hammer in late May.

George County investigators said Vallum admitted to the killing.

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