Dallas police say a transgender woman was seriously wounded after being shot multiple times late Friday, and they are investigating the attack as a hate crime.
On Sunday, police asked for help identifying the suspect and released pictures of his red four-door Chevrolet pickup truck. They said the unidentified man pulled up alongside the survivor, who remains unnamed, as she was walking just after 11 p.m. Friday, yelled slurs about her gender identity and fired a gun at her several times, striking her in the chest and arm.
The victim survived, but because of the severity of her injuries police weren’t able to interview her until Sunday. They asked anyone who recognizes the suspect’s truck or has any information about the attack to contact them, offering a $5,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest and indictment.
Friday’s shooting follows three fatal attacks on transgender women in Texas, with 2 in Dallas, but police said Monday there’s no evidence linking the latest attack to any other incidents or perpetrators.
On May 18th Muhlaysia Booker, 23, was found dead in Dallas, weeks after her beating was caught on tape, and 33-year-old Kendrell Lavar Lyles was arrested in connection with her death and the deaths of two other women. In June, Chynal Lindsey, 26, was found dead in a Dallas lake, and a 22-year-old man was arrested as a suspect in her killing. Tracy Single, 22, was murdered in Houston on July 30th, and a 25-year-old man was arrested in connection with her death.
When Lindsey was killed Dallas, police said they were concerned about the attacks on transgender women and had called in the FBI to help but had no definitive evidence to link the killings together. Dallas Police Major Vincent Weddington said in May that Booker’s death, the fatal shooting of a transgender woman in a car in October 2018 and a stabbing attack on a transgender woman in April all have “similarities,” and Dallas police now believe Lyles is also responsible for the stabbing attack, according to CBS News.
“Our DPD LGBTQ+ Outreach efforts continue to provide us with an opportunity and avenue to proactively engage our LGBTQ+ residents so that we can quickly disseminate information,” the department said in a statement.
At least 18 transgender women of color, including the three from Texas, have been murdered in 2019 alone, according to a count maintained by the Human Rights Campaign.
Sources: NBC News 9/23/19; CBS News 9/23/19; HRC
