Alleged Islan Nettles Killer Rejects Plea Deal, Going To March 30 Trial

James Dixon, the alleged killer of Islan Nettles was offered a plea deal today, but rejected it and is going for a jury trial.  The 25 year old Dixon is alleged to have viciously beaten Nettles to death at 147th Street and Frederick Douglass Ave in Harlem back in 2013 and subsequently confessed to several people that he was the perpetrator.  .

 Prosecutors pushed for 17 years in jail in exchanged for pleading guilty for nettle's murder, but Judge Robert Stolz, citing his age and lack of a criminal record, offered him 12 years in jail.  

Dixon turned it down and according to his defense attorney Norman Williams, "would like to exercise his right to go to trial.".

That trial is scheduled to start March 30, and the case against Dixon is considered by Judge Stolz and Assistant District Attorney Nicholas Viorst to be a strong one.

'There will be confessions the defendant made to four different civilians prior to turning himself in and a written confession he made to a detective after he turned himself in," said DA Viorst.

"There will be a lengthy, detailed, videotaped confession he made to me after that," he added.  DA Viorst also stated medical experts will also testify about the horrific injuries that killed Nettles  

"There's clear overlay of animus toward the transgender status of the victim," argued DA Viorst.

Since Dixon decided to take his chances on a jury trial, he is facing if convicted of manslaughter a punishment range of 5-25 years in jail..Unfortunately since the NY state hate crime statute passed in 2000 only covers sexual orientation, the enhanced punishment isn't available.

Yep, New York trans folks got thrown under the legislative bus to pass that sexual orientation only law.

It is a trial in which the New York trans community and all of us across the nation will be watching to see if Islan after nearly 3 years, finally receives justice.

RIP Jasmine Sierra

This murder happened on January 22 in Bakersfield, CA, but because of media deadnaming and misgendering by KBAK/KBFX-TV, we're just now finding out that we have lost 52 year old Jasmine Sierra.

Her body was found in an apartment in the 1000 block of Monterey St with signs of trauma indicating foul play is possibly involved..

Once again media peeps, misgendering a trans person has ripple effects.   It not only pisses our community off, it makes it harder to find the killer because we don't know or don't care to use a person's deadname out of respect for them   

Bakersfield police are still searching for the perpetrator of this crime, and if you have any information concerning this case you're asked to call 661-327-7111

Two People Arrested In Maya Young Murder Case

That was fast.   Two people have been arrested by Philadelphia PD in connection with the fatal stabbing death of Maya Young.

19 year old Jose Pena and 24 year old Tiffany Floyd  were arrested this week and charged with murder and conspiracy in Young's death.

Floyd was denied bail and is being held pending her scheduled March 16 hearing at 9 AM in Room 306 of the Criminal Justice Center.

Pena was also denied bail, but is being held in a juvenile facility.   His hearing is scheduled at 9 AM in Room 306 of the Criminal Justice Center on March 23.   In case you Philly area peeps wish to witness the proceedings in either case, the Criminal Justice Center is located at 1301 Filbert St.

Will be checking on this case to see if our fallen sister receives justice .  

Maya Young Makes Three Trans Murders In 2016

Sad to report that another US trans woman has been murdered this year.

25 year old Maya Taylor was found stabbed multiple times in the neck and chest in the 4800 block of Penn Street at 11:50 PM EST Saturday in the Frankford section of Philadelphia.

She was taken by police to Aria Health-Frankford, less than two blocks away from where she was found. where she was pronounced dead at 12:21 AM EST on Sunday.

"The community is heartbroken once again with the senseless slaying of another transgender woman of color," wrote Naiymah Sanchez, a coordinator with the Philadelphia based TransHealth Information project on her Facebook page.  


The Philadelphia Police Department is looking for information in this case, and if you have it, you can call the PPD Police Homicide Unit at 215-686-3344 or 911.

A $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in this case.

As I get more details about this case I will post them

Rest in power and peace, Maya.  Not happy about your life violently ending before you even got a chance to spread your wings and fly.

Trans Woman Found Dead In San Antonio Motel

Courtesy of OutInSA is the sad news that a trans woman was found dead in a South San Antonio hotel on February 19.   Don't know for certain in this developing story if foul play was involved and have my trans fam in San Antonio trying to get more details.

According to a KABB-TV report, the mid-30's Veronica Banks Cano was found by police in the El Mio Motel in the 3500 block of Roosevelt Avenue around 9:00 AM fully clothed in a bathtub with some water in it.   The body had no obvious signs of trauma, and some individuals that were in the hotel room have been questioned.

She was from Pleasanton, TX and according to Joe Mendez, a friend of hers interviewed for the OutinSA story, was pursuing a career in nursing.  

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help with the burial expenses.  Her rosary service will be held on Tuesday, February 23 at 7 PM at Palm Heights Mortuary, located at 3711 S. Zarzamora with burial set for Wednesday.

Rest in power and peace Veronica.

Lake County, FL Needs Help With This Trans Cold Case Death

Back in 1988, the body of a trans woman was found decomposing in the woods in the Four Corners area along County Road 474.   Julie Doe as they call her was found wearing a greenish tank top, a long acid washed jean skirt with partially pulled down pantyhose.

Julie Doe also had breast implants,long dyed blonde hair, long manicured nails, was estimated to be between 24-33  years of age and was 5 feet 11.  At the time her remains were tested, the result indicated she was a cis woman who had given birth to one or more children.  

Julie Doe's remains were recently retested as part of a Florida initiative to revist cold cases, and with the new forensic technology gave the result she was a trans feminine woman.

Items of clothing found with Julie Doe's body were send to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement lab in Tallahassee, and  Detective Tamara Dale is hoping that once the results come back in several weeks, it will lead to clues that will help them generate leads in the case.

"I'm hoping their will be foreign DNA on her clothing and if so interview that person as someone who would have had contact with Julie near the time of her death," said Detective Dale in an Orlando Sentinel interview

She also hoping that the renewed interest in the case generates leads that will identify who she is.

"I would love to identify Julie so she can have a proper burial and so her friends and family can have closure on their missing loved one," said Detective Dale.  "I don't think anyone should have o lie unidentified in a laboratory while their family wonders what happened to them."

If you have any information concerning this case, please call the Lake County, FL Sheriff's office at 352-343-2101 or Crimeline at 1-800-423-8477

Murderer Of Melony Smith Convicted

Some good news coming out of southern California concerning our fallen trans sister Melony Smith

A Pomona Superior Court jury found 30 year old Stephen Gonzales guilty of first degree murder in the September 9, 2013 death of 26 year old Melony Smith.

The article has some problematic violations of the AP Stylebook in using Smith's deadname, describing her life as a 'lifestyle'.

But back to the post.

She was found dead at 1:30 PM PDT in her Baldwin Park motel room where she had been staying off and on for a year.

While Gonzales escaped being eligible for capital punishment when the jury found him not guilty of robbing Smith, they did find him guilty of petty theft.

Gonzales is facing a 25 years to life sentence when he returns to court on February 11 for sentencing. Hope they throw the book at his behind.

First Trans Murder of 2016- RIP Monica Loera

I'm sad to report thanks to a tip by Gina Morvay and the Austin Chronicle that the first trans murder of 2016 has happened in the Lone Star State in Austin.

The reason we in Texas and Austin didn't know about it until a week after it happened is because once again, the trans victim was misgendered by the police and subsequently the local media.

As usual, I'm going to do the Austin media's job for them and give our sister the respect in death and proper pronouns she deserves and another example of how to properly report on trans murder cases..

According to the Austin Police Department, 43 year old Monica Loera was engaged in a conversation with a man in front of her home along the 300 block of East Powell Lane in north Austin at 3 AM on January 22 when she was shot.

Loera was transported to the nearby University Medical Center Brackenridge hospital where she was pronounced dead from her injuries and the Travis County Medical Examiner ruled Loera's death a homicide.

Thanks to witness descriptions and messages from the alleged perpetrator left on Loera's phone, 29 year old JonCasey William Rowell was later arrested by APD and charged with the first degree murder of Monica Loera.  Rowell is currently in the Travis County Jail under a $250,000 bond.

I will be watching this case until our sister receives justice.  If I receive any further information about the Loera case, I will pass those details along as I get them.

Rest in power and peace, Monica.   Your trans family and all who loved you will not rest until justice is served/.

TransGriot Update:  Got a call from one of my reporter contacts in Austin.  KEYE-TV will start working on doing their due diligence, talking to people who knew Monica as a prelude to correcting their station's story starting Saturday morning.   

APD's information officers need to do a better job as well of informing the media when it comes to dealing with trans murder victims and not misgendering them. 

Brazilian Trans Day Of Visibility Is Tomorrow

Because of Carnaval, a long list of trans models gracing their local and world's fashion runways like Roberta Close, Lea T, Carol Marra and Felipa Tavares, and a national healthcare system that includes trans specific care up to SRS, Brazil is seen by those of us living in the US as a trans friendly country.

But sadly, because of the confluence of a Roman Catholic faith that has been poisoned by anti-trans attitudes injected to it at the Vatican level,  large Pentecostal megachurch pastors in Brazil spreading hatred of trans people combined with the lack of non-discrimination laws at the federal and state levels, the Brazilian trans community has been hit with an off the charts level of anti-trans murders, abuse and discrimination.

Brazil's trans women are still catching hell.  And it needs to stop.

While so far here in the US in 2016 after a record setting year of trans murders for us we haven't had a trans sister killed yet (and I pray it stays that way for a while) that is not the case in Brazil.

In just this month alone, according to Aleika Barros, 40 trans women have been killed in Brazil in January. That is double the number of trans women we lost in the entire US over all of 2015, and unfortunately means that if this pattern continues,by the time we have this year's TDOR, Brazil will once again lead the world in genocidal levels of violence aimed at trans women living there..

According to Aleika, between 2008 and 2014, 604 Brazilian trans women have been murdered, and sadly, they are on their way to another murderous year.  Our trans Brazilian sisters are tired of it, and so am I.

Tomorrow is the Trans Day of Visibility in Brazil, which has been celebrated there on this January 29 date since 2004.  This is one Brazilian Trans Day of Visibility in which I hope trans Brazilians will not only emphatically point out that they are citizens of their country whose humanity needs to be recognized, but that their human rights need to be protected at the local, state and national level.

And their murders need to end.

I hope and pray their fellow cisgender Brazilians look into their hearts, join with trans Brazilians and resolve to work in tandem with the Brazilian trans community to bring those unacceptable levels of anti-trans murders to zero.

TransGriot Note: Photos are of Brazilan trans woman Aleika Barros

Josh Vallum Charged In Mercedes Williamson Murder

17 year old Mercedes Williamson was the youngest of 21 trans people murdered in the US last year, and her alleged killer will be on trial in a few weeks.

28 year old Josh Vallum is a known member of the Latin Kings gang who has been incarcerated since he was arrested June 2 for Williamson's brutal murder.  Williamson's partially decomposed remains were found on Vallum's father's property in Rocky Creek, MS on June 1 after she went missing on May 30.

And as you probably guessed, the two have known each other for nine to eleven months. While she lived in Theodore, AL, her home address was in George County.

A George County, MS .grand jury indicted Vallum for Williamson's murder back on July 29 with the trial set to start on February 1.  If he is convicted, he faces life in prison with the possibility of parole at age 65..

We'll stay tuned to this case to see if Mercedes receives justice in this case..  

Gwen Araujo's Mom Sylvia Guerrero Needs Our Help

17 year old Gwen Araujo was brutally murdered on October 4, 2002 and ever since then, her mother Sylvia Guerrero has been a standup ally for our community.

I was saddened to learn Sylvia has been going through some tough times lately.   To add to the difficulties she's already experiencing, she unexpectedly lost her Social Security disability benefits and her Medicare in June.  The loss of those benefits has resulted in her car being repossessed.  She reapplied for reinstatement those benefits in August, but still hasn't heard any word whether they have been reinstated.

While some friends have stepped up to help her with a short term loan here and there, she's still fiscally underwater and has started a GoFundMe campaign in which she hopes to raise $4,000 to help her purchase a used car to get around and get her life stabilized.

At the time this post was compiled, $1,170 has been raised toward her goal.   Trans family, can we help Sylvia Guerrero out?   She's been there for us, and now she needs the trans community to stand up for her.

Here's the link to the GoFundMe campaign.

Champion Gets Life For Killing Ty Underwood

It only took the jury 45 minutes to determine in the punishment phase of the trial yesterday that 21 year old Carlton Champion, Jr would be spending the rest of his life in jail for the murder of his onetime girlfriend Ty Underwood.

After several hours of testimony, the jury retired to the deliberation room around 2:15 PM and returned at 3:30 to let Champion and the world know his fate.

The jury sentenced Champion to 5 to 99 years in prison with a fine of up to $10,000.  Guess that little outburst Thursday in court after the verdict was read cost you, homes.

So naw, you won't be back on the streets, you'll be in a TDC facility until at least until 2045 when you'll be eligible for parole.

Of course, he plans to appeal his sentence, but he definitely won't be on the streets for a while.

Champion Found Guilty In Ty Underwood Murder

There's good news coming out of Tyler this Christmas season concerning one of our fallen trans sisters who was taken away from us earlier this year.

On Tuesday the trial of 21 year old former Texas College football player Carlton Ray Champion, Jr. commenced in Tyler for the January 26 murder of girl like us Ty Underwood.

Champion and Underwood had been in a relationship, and text messages indicate the pair had been arguing several hours before Underwood was found shot to death in her vehicle near the Texas College campus.

The trial lasted three days with the state calling several witnesses.  Champion's defense attorney Melvin Thompson rested his case without calling any witnesses, but asserted at the beginning of the trial they arrested the wrong person.

Champion's defense attorney asserted in his closing statement that the state lacked the evidence to convict his client.

"Not a single police officer got up on the stand and testified that any evidence connected Champion," he said. " The police didn't let the facts lead them to the suspect.   They got a suspect and then tried to find evidence."

Prosecuting attorney Jacob Putnam in his closing statement, went into detail about the dating relationship between Champion and Underwood, and her trans status.

"This case is not about convicting Champion because of his lifestyle or who he hung out with," said Putnam. "This case is about convicting Champion because he killed Ty Underwood."

After deliberating the case for two hours, the jury found Champion guilty of first degree murder.

After the guilty verdict was read, Champion had to be restrained by Smith County deputies after he shouted "I'll be back on the streets."

We'll see about that, homes. The jury still isn't finished with your behind yet/and you have previous brushes with the law.

The punishment phase of the trial starts at 9:30 AM CST, and Champion is facing life in prison.   Here's hoping you get to do some serious time for ending Ty Underwood's too brief life.

Ty Underwood Murder Trial Starts In Tyler

After a delay because the defense attorney's motion for more time to prepare a defense for his client was granted, the trial of 21 year old Carlton Champion, Jr, the alleged killer and former boyfriend of Ty Underwood got started in Tyler Tuesday.

KYTX CBS19.tv - News, Weather,


The 24 year old Underwood was killed back in January, and Champion was arrested January 29 and charged with first degree murder.  His defense attorney is trying to claim that police have the wrong guy, while prosecutors say otherwise.

Let's hope we get an early Christmas present of justice for Ty.

Trans Icon Holly Woodlawn Passes Away

Been hearing the mounting bad news that trans actress, icon and Warhol muse Holly Woodlawn was ill with cancer, and her health had been deteriorating for the last few months.

Was sad to hear of her passing today at 3:06 PM PST in Los Angeles at age 69.

Woodlawn in addition to being a girl like us, was the inspiration for the Lou Reed song Walk On The Wild Side, and her life was chronicled in the 1991 documentary A Life In High Heels.

She was born in Puerto Rico in 1946 and raised in Miami Beach, FL.  She ran away from home and hitchhiked to New York, linked up with Andy Warhol and became one of his superstars.




Woodlawn starred in the 1970's underground classic movies Trash (1970) and Women In Revolt (1972) along with performing on the New York and Los Angeles cabaret circuits..  

While Woodlawn received critical acclaim for those film roles, she struggled to turn it into mainstream success and moved back to Miami in 1979.  She did make a comeback into public consciousness starting in the 1990's with the rise of queer and independent films, and most recently had a role on the show Transparent.

Rest in power and peace, Holly Woodlawn.

Pemberton Found Guilty In Jennifer Laude Murder

It took a while, but a verdict has finally been reached in the Jennifer Laude murder case in the Philippines.

The good news is that US Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Pemberton has been found guilty of killing Laude by the Olongapo Regional Trial Court.  The bad news it was for homicide instead of first degree murder.

Looks like he parlayed the 'trans panic' defense into reduced charges and time in jail.  He was sentenced to 6-12 years in a Philippine prison for it with credit for time already served.

WTF?  Pemberton admitted during his August testimony that he choked her unconscious after finding out that she was trans feminine during a sexual encounter in a motel on October 11, 2014.   He claimed Laude was alive when he left her in the hotel room, but she was found with her head dunked in a toilet bowl.

Laude's mother Julita stated in an interview that while she is pleased the verdict detailed everything that happened that night, she was not pleased about the sentence and hoped Pemberton would be found guilty of murder.

But she said, "The important thing is he will be jailed."

Yeah, but I'm still not happy Pemberton is only getting 12 years for killing one of our sisters.

I-71 Interstate Highway Stretch Where Leelah Alcorn Died Named For Her

For those of you that travel on I-71 through Warren County, Ohio, you'll be able to note the signs that the Ohio Department of Transportation erected that named a two mile stretch of it for Leelah Alcorn.

It is the same stretch of interstate near the intersection of I-71 and Ohio Route 48 in which the 17 year old trans teen stepped in the southbound lanes of it in front of an oncoming truck a few hours before her 'fix society' suicide note went viral.

Chris Fortin, who is a 2001 graduate of the same high school Alcorn attended, believed there should be some permanent memorial to Leelah.   Despite now living in Milwaukee, he filed paperwork with ODOT in August to get that section of interstate named for her as part of the state's Adopt-A-Highway program.

He hope to schedule the first cleanup of that stretch of I-71 sometime in January, and says he has far more volunteers than he can count eager to do so.

The TDOR 2015 Names List

Next Friday will be the Transgender Day of Remembrance.  It started with a 1999 candlelight vigil in San Francisco organized by Gwen Smith to call attention to the still unsolved murder of Boston's Rita Hester that occurred on November 28, 1998 and the unacceptable media misgendering that happened in the wake of it.  What infuriated transpeople at the time was that much of that media misgendering happened in a gay owned newspaper.

We were also beginning to forget the names and details of many of the trans people who had been murdered pre-TDOR, and the Remembering Our Dead web project was started to preserve that history and ensure we didn't allow the memories of the dead to fade.

The 2015 TDOR list of names of our fallen sisters has been compiled with sadly 22 of them from the United States. Sadly Brazil once again leads the pack in being the deadliest place on Earth to be a trans person.  The youngest person on this 2015 TDOR list of names is just 13 years old.

Ever since that initial TDOR event, it has spread around the United States and the world to become a memorial event in which we pay homage to and remember the trans persons killed from November 21 of the previous year to November 20.

Once again, it's time for us to remember those who we have lost, and resolve to do whatever we can to increase understanding and acceptance of trans people in society to the point that the TDOR is no longer necessary.

But we are a long way from making that ultimate goal happen.

Upcoming 20th Anniversary Of Chanelle Pickett's Murder

I'm going to be speaking at back to back Transgender Day Of Remembrance events here in Houston on November 18 and 19.   One will be the TDOR event Dee Dee Watters is organizing for Progressive Open Door Christian Center. The next day I'm the keynote speaker for a TDOR event that will take place on the HCC-Southeast campus.

I'll pass along the details for both events as I get them.

While pulling up some TDOR research material in preparation for compiling that HCC keynote speech and my commentary for the PODCC TDOR, I noted that November 20 will be the 20th anniversary of the murder of 23 year old Chanelle Pickett at the hands of William Palmer in Boston.

Palmer basically got time served for killing Chanelle, a travesty of justice that royally pissed me and many trans people and advocates at the time off.  

Because Chanelle's murder happened a year into my own transition, like Tyra Hunter she is constantly in my thoughts because both of them were not only Black girls like me, they were both so young when it happened.  Like Tyra, I wonder how Chanelle's life would have turned out if she were still alive along with her identical twin sister Gabrielle and walking this planet as a 43 year old trans woman.




Ironic that the November 20 date she was taken away from us is one in which trans people and our allies around the world have set as the day to remember the trans people who were murdered in that particular year.  While the US has contributed 22 names to that depressing list, transphobic hatred has contributed to the murder of trans women around the world with the youngest being just 13 years old.

And the Remembering Our Dead list is getting longer, not shorter.

Rest in power Chanelle.  We will not only not allow the memories of your too brief life to fade, we'll do everything possible to make life better for all trans people.

Sick Of You Washington Media Peeps Disrespecting My Departed Sister Zella

It's bad enough that we US based trans people have lost 22 trans women to anti-trans violence this year with the latest being Zella Ziona Smith a few days ago

It's even more infuriating when their local media outlets add insult and disrespect to their memories by misgendering them.

And it happens far too often to murdered trans women of color.

Once again for you media peeps who refuse to get the message, since 2001 the AP Stylebook has guidelines has guidelines that tell you how you should cover trans people.

transgender-Use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.  If that preference is not expressed, use the pronoun consistent with the individuals live publicly.

Translation: transgender woman = use female pronouns in story. Transgender male = use  male pronouns in story.   We determine that by gender presentation, not genitalia. .
GLAAD has a media guide you can peruse in addition to the NLGJA one.  
Once again, we have a trans sister in Zella Ziona Smith murdered, and the local media get it totally wrong by referring to a trans feminine person  as a 'transgender man'

Yeah FOX5, WTOP, I'm talking about you and your messed up stenography in this case so far.

Now let's try to once again get you media peeps to understand a concept so simple that even the GEICO caveman will get it.   A transgender woman is a woman, a transgender man is a man.

It is also not necessary for a reader to know Zella's dead  name or add to the story the problematic lines 'her legal name is ______' or 'born as'.  You have already let your readers know that Zella is a trans feminine person by stating that fact in the headline or opening paragraph of the story or in your opening commentary

Throwing the old name in the story is disrespectful, unnecessary (and in some cases triggering) to the trans community and the people who knew and loved Zella.

If we mere bloggers easily get this and consistently write stories with this in mind since we sadly have had way too much practice over the last few years doing so, what's your problem Washington media?

It's not like you are not going to have the situation of not compiling a  story about a transperson ever again because we make up 3% of the population in the Washington metro area and elsewhere.

And may I remind you that some of the people you write or broadcast these news stories for are transgender people  depending upon you as the professional journalists to get it right the first time.