Say her name: Michelle Simone/Washington
Philadelphia police have confirmed that transgender woman Michelle Washington was shot to death there early Sunday morning, May 19, according to a report by the Philadelphia Gay News. She has been identified in other reports as Michelle Simone, and her murder comes about one day after Muhlaysia Booker was found shot to death in East Dallas early Saturday, May 18.
PGN reports that police responded to the 3400 block of North 11th Street, in the Franklinville neighborhood, at about 5:07 a.m. Sunday, where they found Washington, who had suffered gunshot wounds to the head, body and buttocks. She was transported to Temple University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 5:33 a.m. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
According to PGN, Washington, 40, was studying nursing at Community College of Philadelphia. She was also known as Tameka, and was mother to Mikal Woods, a female impersonator at Tabu Lounge & Sports Bar in Philadelphia.
Washington is the fifth transgender woman known to have been murdered so far in 2019. All five were black women, and all five were shot to death. She is third third trans woman of color to die within a week from violence: Claire Legato, 21, of Cleveland, Ohio died in a hospital there on Tuesday, May 14, a month after being shot in the head during an argument; Muhlaysia Booker of Dallas was found shot to death on a street in East Dallas early Saturday morning, May 18, about a month after she was assaulted in the parking lot at her South Dallas apartment complex following a minor car wreck, while a crowd of onlookers laughed and jeered. Video of the attack went viral on social media, and one man was arrested and charged with aggravated assault.
Also murdered this year have been Dana Martin, 31, shot to death Jan. 6 in Montgomery, Ala., and Ashanti Carmon, 27, shot to death March 30 in Prince George’s County, Md.
#SayTheirNames
— Tammye Nash
