Amia Tyrae Berryman, a 28-year-old Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in the early morning hours of March 26, 2018, inside a motel room at the Shades Motel on Airline Highway in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Police found Berryman with gunshot wounds and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Friends remembered Berryman as a sweet person with a big heart who had built a chosen family within the local LGBTQ+ community after losing biological-family support following her transition. She worked for Alliance Home Health Care and graduated from Scotlandville Magnet High School.

Investigators initially had no named suspects, but within days identified 22-year-old Dedrick Butler through witness statements, motel surveillance footage, and Berryman’s phone records. Surveillance showed Butler leaving the room and driving away; he later told police he had been in the room with a firearm but denied firing the weapon. He was arrested March 29, 2018, and booked on charges including second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

If anyone knew Amia or has information about what happened that night, please share what you know.