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Transgender Woman Shot To Death In Oakland

OAKLAND (CBS/AP) - Oakland police are investigating the shooting death of a transgender woman whom witnesses and friends think was targeted because of her gender identity.

Hayward resident Brandy Martell was in the driver's seat of a car with three other transgender women on Sunday morning when a group of men who had approached the women earlier returned and an argument ensued, Tiffany Woods, Martell's former supervisor at a Fremont health clinic, told The Oakland Tribune.

One of the men fired into the car, killing the 37-year-old Martell.

Until late last year, Martell worked as a peer counselor at the Tri-City Health Center's TransVision program. She helped organize Alameda County's last five Transgender Day of Remembrance, an annual event honoring transgender slaying victims.

The Tribune says police have not released a motive in the killing.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

 

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