[2][3][4] She came to national attention in June 2012 for accepting a plea bargain of 41 months for second-degree manslaughter of a man she stabbed after McDonald and her friends were assaulted in Minneapolis outside a bar near closing time.

[5][6][7][8] The attack, a year prior, was widely seen as racist and transphobic, and became physical when McDonald was struck in the face by the man's friend with "an alcoholic drink" glass causing a bleeding gash that needed stitches.

[11]: 6  According to the Bay Area Reporter her conviction "sparked outrage, and was viewed by many as an act of transphobia and racism against a woman who defended herself.

She also received support from transgender activist and actress Laverne Cox, star of Orange Is the New Black, which includes story lines about trans women of color and hate crimes.

[16][17] FREE CeCe, a documentary about McDonald's experiences told through interviews by Laverne Cox, started production in December 2013.

[18] The film centers on the attack on McDonald and her friends including the stabbing, her imprisonment, and violence experienced by trans women of color.

[12] McDonald, who was born in 1989[2] and is originally from South Chicago,[11]: 6  studied fashion at Minneapolis Community and Technical College.

[11]: 2  McDonald said they shouted racist and transphobic slurs,[4] while Thoreson, in interviews with police, characterized the remarks as derogatory and sarcastic.

[21] McDonald testified that she and her friends tried to walk away,[22] but that Flaherty started a fight[23] by smashing a glass of alcohol against her face, cutting her[22] and requiring 11 stitches.

[21] After those present saw Schmitz bleeding, the fighting stopped; McDonald and Thomas ran towards Cub Foods while some of their friends boarded a Metro Transit bus.

[25] In the days following the stabbing, the office of Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman reviewed evidence including a taped confession from McDonald before charging her with two counts of second-degree murder.

[11]: 4 The defense also intended to bring before the jury details about Schmitz, including that he had faced more than two dozen criminal cases since turning 18; his past convictions for fifth-degree assault and domestic assault; that methamphetamine and benzoylecgonine (a cocaine metabolite), which when combined can lead to unpredictable and unwarranted violence, were found in his system; and that he had a tattoo of a swastika on his chest.

"[11]: 4 On the first day of pretrial hearings, the prosecution disputed the admittance of Schmitz's tattoo, arguing it was not relevant and was unfairly prejudicial.

[11]: 4  Judge Daniel Moreno ruled that Schmitz's tattoo and his three previous convictions for assault were not admissible as evidence of his alleged violent disposition, that McDonald's supporters could not wear "Free CeCe" T-shirts in court,[23] and that the defense's toxicology expert could testify to the effects of methamphetamine and benzoylecgonine in general but not their effects on Schmitz on the night in question.

"[21] In April 2012, author Kate Bornstein spoke about McDonald on MSNBC cable television program Melissa Harris-Perry, comparing McDonald's situation with George Zimmerman's in the aftermath of the killing of Trayvon Martin regarding self-defense issues and how the case is viewed through the media focus.

[20]: 2  The case also attracted national attention from LGBT activists including author Leslie Feinberg, who wrote that "the right of self-defense against all forms of oppressions—the spirit of Stonewall—is at the heart of the demand to free [McDonald]".

[4] Cam Gordon, a member of the Minneapolis City Council, announced his support for McDonald and called the incident "another example [of] transgender women of color being targeted for hate- and bias-related violence",[11]: 1  and Susan Allen, a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, called on Freeman to consider the "extenuating circumstances" of McDonald's case.

[14] McDonald also received the support of transgender activist and actress Laverne Cox, who stars in the television series Orange Is the New Black.

[20]: 2 In June 2012, a group calling itself the "Queer Attack Squadron" claimed responsibility for a Portland, Oregon incident throwing an unlit molotov cocktail through the window of a Wells Fargo bank as a gesture of solidarity with McDonald.

[11]: 6  In accepting the plea deal, McDonald had to relinquish her argument that she killed Schmitz in self-defense or by accident, and had to forego a trial by jury.

[4] At her sentencing hearing McDonald told the court "I'm sure that to Dean's family, he was a loving, caring person, but that is not what I saw that night.

[35] McDonald was released on January 13, 2014, after serving 19 months, and remained under the supervision of the Minnesota Department of Corrections through her 41-month sentence.

[12] In 2016, McDonald teamed up with gender non-conforming activist and prison abolitionist Joshua Allen for a Black Excellence Tour.

[40][41] FREE CeCe, a documentary about McDonald by Laverne Cox and Jac Gares, started production in August 2013.