Trans woman Muhlaysia Booker beaten by mob last month shot dead in Dallas
Transgender woman Muhlaysia Booker, who was shot dead in Dallas on Saturday May 18 (Facebook)
Transgender woman Muhlaysia Booker, who was violently beaten by a mob in Dallas, Texas last month, has been shot dead.
Footage was shared online last month of transgender woman Muhlaysia Booker being violently attacked by a group of men.
Police in Dallas confirmed today (May 20) that the 23-year-old was found dead on the street from a gunshot wound on Saturday morning at 7am (May 18), Buzzfeed reports.
Police said Muhlaysia Booker’s death was caused by ‘homicidal violence’
Dallas Police Lt. Vincent Weddington said her death was caused by “homicidal violence” but did not provide any extra details. Booker was reportedly pronounced dead at the scene.
Last month, video footage of Booker’s assault—which happened in broad daylight in Dallas—went viral online. In the video, Booker can be seen being repeatedly kicked and punched by a group of men. She later said they also used anti-LGBT+ slurs against her.
The incident began when Booker accidentally backed into a car belonging to one of the men. When she tried to flee the scene, the suspect reportedly ran her off the road to stop her. As a group of men started to beat her, some of the crowd started to film the attack.
“This time I can stand before you; whereas in other scenarios, we are at a memorial.”
– Muhlaysia Booker, speaking last month after her assault
29-year-old Edward Thomas was later arrested and charged with aggravated assault for the attack. He is no longer in jail and police are unaware of his whereabouts, however they said that there is no evidence to link him to the killing. He was allegedly offered $200 to attack Booker by others at the scene.
Muhlaysia Booker (CBS 11)
Police said they are investigating other people who took part in Booker’s assault last month to identify other potential suspects.
Dallas Mayor said he was ‘deeply saddened’ to hear about the death of Muhlaysia Booker
Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings reacted to the news of Booker’s death on Twitter, and said: “I am deeply saddened to learn of the murder of Muhlaysia Booker. I call on anyone with information on this homicide to please contact the Dallas Police Department.”
When Booker finally escaped her horrifying attack last month, she was hospitalised with facial fractures and an injury to her right arm. Dallas police said at the time that they were treating the incident as a hate crime.
She later spoke out about her attack and said she was thankful to be alive.
On April 20, Booker made a public statement and drew attention to the disproportionate violence against trans women of colour, saying: “This time I can stand before you; whereas in other scenarios, we are at a memorial.”
Trans women of colour are disproportionately affected by violence. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) estimates that at least 26 trans people were killed across the United States last year. Most of those were African-American women.
