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Police Shot a Black Trans Woman 16 Times — DA Called It Justifiable

Police shoot Black trans woman 16 times, and claims it was justified.

Family and friends say Roxanne Moore suffered from mental illness, and that police should have handled the situation differently.

A Black transgender woman is still in the hospital after being shot 16 times by police last week. According to the Reading Eagle, Roxanne Moore was shot in Reading, Pennsylvania, after police responded to a 911 call about a person waving a gun and threatening others. The district attorney said Moore refused commands by officers to drop her gun before they discharged their weapons. Friends and local activists are left with questions about the shooting, though.

"We're here today for Roxanne, who is, at this very moment, still in the hospital in critical condition because of who she is: a Black trans woman," Jane Palmer, executive director of Berks Stand Up, said at a vigil held for Moore on Tuesday. "Any one of those things, being Black, being trans, being a woman, would make her vulnerable, but she lives at the intersection of all three."

The Berks County District Attorney's office announced the findings of their detectives to date. They say authorities received a 911 call at 7:00 a.m. claiming a person was in possession of a gun in the 800 block of Franklin Street. A later report claimed Moore stole the gun and fled her apartment after an argument. She then reportedly threatened people and assaulted one person. When uniformed police officers arrived, the District Attorney's office says Moore pointed the gun at police despite orders to drop the weapon. It was at this point, detectives investigating the case have determined, that police opened fire with their own weapons, striking Moore 16 times. She was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Family and friends of Moore are upset with the shooting. They told the Reading Eagleshe suffered from mental illness and police should have handled the situation differently. Tensions were running high at Tuesday's vigil, hosted by Shakair Mccain and Bri Tyson which was meant to both support both Moore and shine a spotlight on mental illness.

"I just want my grandchild to get the help she needs," said Moore's unnamed grandmother. "It [Moore's mental illness] should have been recognized long ago."

Moore's unnamed brother saw things less charitably.

"I'm mad, mad as hell," he said. "I just want my sister to know I love her. That's all."

RELATED | Aerrion Burnett Is the 27th Known Trans Person Killed in 2020

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