According to reports, 20-year-old Black transgender woman Taya Ashton was killed in Suitland, Prince George’s County, Maryland on 17 July.
This marks the 31st known death of a transgender, non-binary or gender non-conforming person in the country this year. Prince George’s County police found Ashton’s body before 10pm, states the Washington Blade, where they discovered a single gunshot wound.
She was pronounced dead at the scene. Detectives are working to identify a suspect(s) and determine a motive,” the police said in a statement. “Based on the preliminary investigation, at this time, detectives do not believe this was a random crime.