Officials in Los Angeles are speaking out after three transgender women were attacked and robbed on Hollywood Boulevard, and they are calling the people who stood by and watched callous.
According to KABC, the attack happened around 2 a.m. on Monday. The three women, Joslyn, Jaslene and Eden, say a group of men harassed, assaulted and robbed them. Joslyn told KABC that one of the men grabbed her hand and pulled her, saying they were going to find her friends.
Police said Joslyn got away, and the men then found her friends and shouted anti trans language at them. Police also said Jaslene was hit over the head with a bottle and knocked to the ground. Reports say bystanders joined in with verbal attacks and recorded the incident on their phones.
On Thursday, the Los Angeles Police Department announced it had arrested a suspect, Carlton, 29, on robbery and assault charges, and police described the attack as a hate crime. Police said he bragged about the attack on social media. The Washington Post reported that police also connected two other men to the case, and that one of them was wanted for assault at the time. Charges are allegations, and Baller Alert did not find a response from the men named by police.
Deputy Chief Justin Eisenberg called the people who stood by and watched “callous.” Councilman Mitch O’Farrell told the Washington Post he was shocked and angered by the video, saying it was a sucker punch to everyone who believes in civilized behavior. LAPD Chief Michel Moore said in a Twitter video that the department stands with the transgender community and will not allow this kind of hate and violence in Los Angeles.
The Human Rights Campaign says at least 26 transgender or gender nonconforming people have been fatally shot or killed this year, compared to 27 in 2019.
Since the attack, a GoFundMe for the women’s legal fees has raised more than $16,000, and protesters marched in Hollywood on Thursday in support of them. Joslyn thanked supporters in an Instagram post, writing that she is touched that so many people care about what happened to her and to trans women everywhere.
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