STATE OF EMERGENCY: 20 Transgender American Citizens Have Been Killed
2019 has already witnessed at least twenty transgender people fatally shot or killed by other violent means. As we continue to work toward justice and equality for transgender people, we mourn those the LGBTQ community has lost.
NOTE: This post will be updated when new information is available in these cases. TPFNewsDesk is respectful of the victims and their identities, specifically when they were living.
Dana Martin, 31, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Montgomery, Alabama, on January 6. Reports stated that she was found in a roadside ditch in her vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene. Daroneshia Duncan-Boyd, an Alabama-based trans advocate, said that “she was a person that was loved by many.”
Jazzaline Ware, a Black transgender woman, was found dead in her Memphis apartment in March. Her death is being investigated as a homicide, according to The Advocate. “Our community in Memphis is mourning the death of Jazzaline Ware, a Black trans woman and beloved friend,” said the Transgender Law Center in a press release. Further details are unknown as of May 31, 2019.
Ashanti Carmon, 27, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Prince George’s County, Maryland, on March 30. Few details are yet known about the crime, and the investigation is ongoing. “Until I leave this Earth, I’m going to continue on loving her in my heart, body, and soul,” said Philip Williams, Carmon’s fiancé. “She did not deserve to leave this Earth so early, especially in the way that she went out.
Claire Legato, 21, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Cleveland on April 15. Local media reports that Legato was shot in the head after an argument broke out between her mother and the suspect. She was taken to a nearby hospital and died from her injuries on May 14. Friends and family took to social media to mourn Legato’s death, remembering her as someone who was “full of life.”
Muhlaysia Booker, 23, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Dallas on May 18. Local media reported that Booker was found dead, lying face down with a gunshot wound near a golf course in east Dallas. In April, Booker was viciously attacked in what Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings described as “mob violence.” Officers say that there is no indication as of this point that the April attack is linked to Booker’s killing.
Michelle ‘Tamika’ Washington, 40, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Philadelphia on May 19. Police responded to reports of shots fired in North Philadelphia’s Franklinville neighborhood, according to the Philadelphia Gay News. Washington, who was also known by the name Tameka, was found with several gunshot wounds and transported to Temple University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. She is remembered by friends and loved ones as a beloved sister and “gay mother.”
Paris Cameron, 20, a Black transgender woman, was among three people killed in a horrific anti-LGBTQ shooting in a home in Detroit on May 25, according to local reports. Alunte Davis, 21, and Timothy Blancher, 20, two gay men, were found dead at the scene and Cameron was taken to the hospital, where she died from her injuries. Two other victims were also shot but survived. “This case illustrates the mortal danger faced by members of Detroit’s LGBTQ community, including transgender women of color,” Fair Michigan President Alanna Maguire said.
Chynal Lindsey, 26, a Black transgender woman, was found dead in White Rock Lake, Dallas, with signs of “homicidal violence” on June 1, according to police. The Dallas Police Department has reached out to federal law enforcement to aid in the investigation. As of June 4, no further details were are available.
Chanel Scurlock, 23, a Black transgender woman, was found fatally shot in Lumberton, North Carolina, on June 6. Few details are yet public about the crime, but police told a local news outlet they have “great leads” in their investigation. “RIP baby,” wrote a friend on Facebook. “You [lived] your life as you wanted. I’m proud of you for being unapologetically correct about your feelings and expectations of YOU.”
Zoe Spears, 23, a Black transgender woman, was found lying in the street with signs of trauma near Eastern Avenue in Fairmount Heights, Maryland, and later pronounced dead on June 13, according to local reports. While officials have not yet released her name, transgender advocate Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of Casa Ruby, identified Spears as the victim. “She was my daughter — very bright and very full of life,” Corado told HRC. “Casa Ruby was her home. Right now, we just want her and her friends and the people who knew her to know that she’s loved.”
Brooklyn Lindsey, 32, a Black transgender woman, was found deceased on the front porch of an abandoned house in Kansas City, Missouri, on June 25, according to local news reports. The Kansas City Star writes that her death is currently being investigated as a homicide. “I love you, Brooklyn Lindsey,” wrote a friend on Twitter. “I shall live on for you. Rest in power, sista.”
Kiki Fantroy, 21, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Miami on July 31. Fantroy’s mother remembered her as having “a heart of gold” and being “a very loving person.” She also pleaded for justice for her daughter, saying, “My baby, my baby. Please help bring justice to my baby.”
Denali Berries Stuckey, 29, was found shot to death along a road in North Charleston, S.C., July 20. Police and local media initially misgendered and deadnamed her, but the police then announced they had learned she was a transgender woman. She was a Charleston native and worked as a manicurist. Police are investigating her death as a homicide but have declined to say if they believe it was a hate crime. “I lost my best friend, first cousin,” wrote a family member on Facebook. “We were more than cousin. We were like brother and sisters. I love you so much, Pooh.”
Jordan Cofer, 22, was among the nine victims killed in a mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio, on August 4. While Cofer was only out to a handful of close friends and used the pronouns he/him/his on his social media profiles, he is remembered by friends as “extremely bright” and “well-liked.” A friend told Splinter News that “Jordan was probably one of the sweetest people you would ever meet, a true saint, but he was also very scared constantly. He tried to give the best to everyone.”
Pebbles LaDime “Dime” Doe, 24, a Black transgender woman, was killed in Allendale County, South Carolina, on August 4. She was found dead in a car parked in a driveway, according to reports. Doe’s friends and family remembered her as having a “bright personality,” and being someone who “showed love” and who was “the best to be around.”
Tracy Single, 22, was found dead in a gas station parking lot in Houston July 30, having suffered severe lacerations and puncture wounds. Her name and her transgender identity were not reported until several days later, after an investigation by the Houston Police’s LGBT liaison and local activists. She was also known by the name Tracy Williams. In her honor, Houston lit its City Hall in the pink, blue, and white colors of the trans Pride flag for two days in August and illuminated a section of bridges in the heavily LGBTQ Montrose neighborhood in the same colors. Joshua Dominic Bourgeois, 25, was arrested August 23 and is charged with Single’s murder. Police said the two had been dating.
Bailey Reeves, 17, was found late on September 2 after being shot multiple times, according to reports. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died of her injuries. Reeves is the 17th known transgender person killed this year, a majority of whom were Black transgender women. A vigil is being held on Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. in Baltimore to celebrate her life.
Bee Love Slater, 23, was brutally murdered and found burned in a vehicle in Clewiston, Fla. on Wednesday. According to reports that circulated in the hours following her death, the victim was tied up and shot before she was incinerated. She would have been 24 next week.
Slater’s death marks the 18th murder of a transgender person so far in 2019, just two days after 17-year-old Bailey Reeves was gunned down on Parkwood Avenue in Baltimore, Md. while leaving a party at 8 p.m.
Ja’leyah Jamar, 28, is the victim of a fatal shooting September 13 in Kansas City, Kan., that has been identified by friends, relatives, and activists as trans woman Ja’leyah Jamar. Police and media, however, have called the victim a man and have not released a name. Police did release photos of a man being sought in connection with the crime and of his car.
Additionally, the transgender community is deeply concerned about the deaths of Johana ‘Joa’ Medina and Layleen Polanco, whose stories we are following closely.
Medina, 25, died at a hospital in El Paso, Texas just hours after being released from ICE custody. She suffered severe health complications that went untreated while she was in detention, according to Diversidad Sin Fronteras. Her exact cause of death is not yet known. UPDATE, June 12, 2:57 p.m.: Johana Medina Leon’s family filed a claim against ICE and DHS, claiming the agencies violated Medina Leon’s civil rights. The family states the agencies “negligently managed her care because of her nationality, her seeking asylum, and her transgender status; thereby causing her death,” according to a statement.
Polanco was found dead in a cell at Riker’s Island on June 7. Her exact cause of death is also as of yet unknown.
Also, the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs is concerned about the deaths of two black queer women in Atlanta, GA this year: Te’a Denise Leger, 21, and Therese Bradley Horton, 43. We are also following these stories closely.
NCAVP mourns the death of 21-year-old Te’a Denise Liger, a Black queer woman in Atlanta, GA whose life was tragically taken on August 21, 2019.
Te’a is remembered as a star athlete, musical artist, and recent graduate from Kell High School in Marietta. She was also a student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. According to local reports, Te’a was one of three people who was robbed and assaulted before succumbing to fatal injuries after being shot. Her mother mournfully told WSB-TV, “She was an artist in every way, painting, music and was the brightest spirit… They took her away from her brothers and she won’t be a hashtag or a face on a shirt. She wanted to be a change.” As investigations continue, police have charged one man with multiple counts of assault.
NCAVP mourns the death of 43-year-old Therese Bradley Horton, a Black queer woman in Atlanta, GA whose life was tragically taken on August 4, 2019.
According to local reports, Therese Bradley Horton became a victim of fatal intimate partner violence when her girlfriend, Candace Morgan, 35, chased and shot her outside of an entertainment complex in Atlanta, GA. Morgan is currently charged with murder and investigations are ongoing. NCAVP’s latest report, issued earlier this year, Hate Violence and Intimate Partner Violence in LGBTQ and HIV-affected Communities in 2017, highlights LGBTQ people’s risk for severe and fatal intimate partner violence, as well as hate violence. Our condolences are with Therese Horton’s family, friends, and community.
