Dallas police request FBI help after string of transgender women murdered

Dallas Police Chief U. Reneé Hall said Monday that a transgender woman was pulled from a local lake on Saturday with "obvious signs of homicidal violence," and with four unsolved homicides of trans women dating back to 2015, Dallas police are seeking federal help. "The Dallas Police Department has reached out to the FBI because as we know, this is the second individual who is transgender, who is deceased in our community," Hall said. "We are concerned, we are actively and aggressively investigating this case."

The discovery of 26-year-old Chynal Lindsey's body followed the May fatal shooting of 23-year-old Muhlaysia Booker, the October 2018 fatal shooting of 29-year-old Brittany White, and the near-fatal stabbing of another transgender woman in April. All four slain trans women and were black, as is the stabbing victim. Police say they don't yet have evidence linking the crimes. An FBI spokeswoman said the bureau is "committed to investigating all federal crimes and providing assistance to our local partners when asked," and if "information comes to light of a potential federal civil rights violation, the FBI is prepared to assist."

At least 136 transgender people have been killed since 2013, most of them black transgender women, the Human Rights Campaign says, and the actual number is probably much higher due to misreporting of gender or transphobia. Before she was shot dead, Booker gained national attention due to a video of her being brutally beaten by several men in a parking lot, with a cheering crowd egging the attackers on. "This has been a rough week for myself, the transgender community, and also the city of Dallas," Booker said at a press conference in April. "This time, I can stand before you ... whereas in other scenarios, we are at a memorial."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up