On the morning of August 27, 2022, 33-year-old Dede Ricks, a Black transgender woman from Ohio, was found shot at a residence on Manistique Street in Detroit. Police responded to a shooting call at about 3:40 a.m. and discovered Ricks with gunshot wounds to her back and chest; medics pronounced her dead at the scene.

Detroit police arrested 31-year-old Deontae Antoine Close of Detroit later that same day. The Wayne County Prosecutor charged Close with second-degree murder and a felony firearm possession offense. He was arraigned with bond set at $500,000 and conditions that would include electronic GPS monitoring and a prohibition on possessing weapons.

Advocates noted this was the second killing of a Black transgender woman in Detroit within a short period, though prosecutors said the two cases did not appear related. Who knew Dede or has information about what happened that night?