Courtney Eshay Key, a 25-year-old black trans woman, is the 43rd known trans person to have been killed in the US this year after she was shot dead in Chicago, Illinois on the evening of Christmas.
According to CBS Chicago, Key’s body was found at 8.35pm on 82nd Street near Drexel Avenue; it was initially believed to have been a hit and run incident, but gunshot wounds were later determined as the cause of her death, which is now being treated as a homicide.
Key was also misgendered by police after her death.Friends believe the incident was a hate crime, with one of Key’s closest companions, Beverly Ross, saying: “I believe Eshay was targeted…We need to get to the bottom of this because Black trans lives matter.