Her name was Tai’Vion Latham, or just ‘Tai’ for short, but she represents yet another transgender person who has suffered a violent death after someone discovered her body in a West Baltimore alleyway on Sunday morning.
“To know that she’d been shot five times and covered in a blanket and put in a ditch—-that shows the inhumanity that the person who killed her has,” said Desire Bandz, a trans community advocate.
Over the last five years, the Baltimore-based Maryland Safe Haven has witnessed similar crimes against 28 other transgender people in the area.
“It is an injustice for her and all of us,” said Executive Director Iya Dammons, “Her story is our story so we want to make sure that her story is being told in that law enforcement is doing the correct things to make sure that her murder is solved.”
While the organization doubts that transgender murder cases have historically received the same attention of any others, Mayor Brandon Scott assures us this one will.
“We’re going to make sure, just like every single homicide case that we have in the city, every non-fatal shooting that we have in the city, that the women and men in BPD track those people down and do their due diligence,” said the mayor.
That’s reassuring to Tai’s friends who say there’s always been violence against people who are transgender, but where there’s violence, there should be justice.
“I’m hurt,” said Koryne Davis, “I’m not going to sit here and if anybody asked me, ‘Are you okay?’ No, I’m not okay, like I am hurt. I am angry, like somebody deserves to be hurt. Justice needs to be served.”
If you have any information about this case, which could help police, you’re asked to call 410-396-2100 or if you wish to remain anonymous, you can call Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP.
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