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Morris Garner, Mississippi man, charged in butt-implant death
Morris Garner, a Jackson man who also goes by the name Tracey Lynn Garner and dresses and lives like a woman, is escorted into a Mississippi courtroom on Sept. 11
/ AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis(CBS/AP) JACKSON, Miss. - A Mississippi judge denied bond Tuesday for 53-year-old Morris Garner, a transgendered Jackson woman charged with murder for allegedly performing an illegal buttocks implant that led to the death of a Georgia woman.
PICTURES: Miss. man charged in butt implant death
Garner, who also goes by the name Tracey Lynn Garner, is suspected of performing the surgery at his house last March. Attorney General Jim Hood said that Garner had no training or license to perform such a procedure.
Hood referred to Garner as a man, and Garner was booked into the Hinds County jail as a man. John Colette, Garner's lawyer, said Garner had undergone operations to change gender.
Garner is charged in the death of 37-year-old Karima Gordon, who died in Atlanta a few days after receiving an injection as part of the implant. Authorities said they are testing the substance that was injected into the victim and believe it may turn out to be some kind of counterfeit silicone.
Hood said more people may have had breast or buttock implants performed by Garner, and he hopes those people come forward.
Garner was arrested on Sept. 6 on a depraved heart murder charge, which is a legal term for an action that demonstrates a "callous disregard for human life" and results in death, according to The Associated Press. It carries a life sentence.
Hinds County Judge Melvin Priester denied Garner's bond after a hearing on Tuesday afternoon.
"Based on the seriousness of the charge, the court does find that you are a danger to yourself, and more importantly, a danger to the community," the judge said.
Hood said the victim, who served in the military and wanted to become a model, found Garner after meeting someone on the internet and paying $200 for the referral to Garner. Hood said investigators were looking for the person who referred Garner, who authorities would only identify as "Pebbles."
Gordon drove to Mississippi with a friend to have the procedure, and she became ill a few hours later. Her friend called Garner and asked what to do, and he told them to buy some cough medicine, Hood said. Gordon died at a Georgia hospital a few days later.
"We've had people practicing medicine without a license, but nothing like this," Hood said.
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