Kenji Z Spurgeon, a 23-year-old Black transgender woman, was shot and killed in the early hours of July 1, 2024, in a parking lot on East Pine Street near Cal Anderson Park in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Officers found her with a gunshot wound to the chest behind Teto’s Cantina; medics and officers rendered aid but Spurgeon was pronounced dead at the scene.

Friends and family remembered her as a radiant presence, part of the founding class of Summit Sierra High School, known for lifting others with jokes, song, and dance. A community fundraiser and a candlelight vigil followed to help with return-of-remains costs and to mourn another Black trans person lost to gun violence.

Homicide detectives opened an investigation immediately. Police took one person into custody at the scene, but no arrest in the murder has been announced and the suspect remains at large; authorities say they do not believe the killing was motivated by Spurgeon’s gender identity. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Seattle Police Department.