Her first name has been spelled as both Keisha and Kiesha in news reports, but is spelled Keisha on her Facebook page. Action News is told Jenkins is from North Philadelphia.
Advertisement
“We will leave no stone unturned”, says Little, noting that, while no motive is known at this time, investigators are considering the possibility that Jenkins’s transgender identity played a role in the attack.
“Captain James Clark of the Philadelphia police said the department is actively investigating the crime and seeking witnesses who saw the shooting as well as the driver who dropped her off. “We don’t know if it’s potentially a hate crime, or a robbery, we really don’t know”, Clark told reporters. She urges the LGBT community to come forward with any information that could help police catch the killers. After Jenkins fell to the ground, one of the men pulled out a gun and fired two shots, police said.
At least 18 other transgender women have reportedly been killed in the USA this year – and at least 16 of those victims, including Jenkins, were women of color. That is up from 12 in 2013.
The actual number of killings of trans individuals is likely much higher, as family members often don’t report to police or media that a victim identified as transgender. Raheam Felton was charged in the crime, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. He was dating one of her roommates. She was told Jenkins was killed during an attempted robbery.
“This type of wicked, inhumane violence just has no place here”, she said.
Advertisement
People on Twitter mourned Jenkins’s death using the hashtag #sayhername. “And the problem isn’t solved by solving each homicide after it happens”.
