A Brooklyn man has been arrested and charged in connection with the 2013 murder of Islan Nettles, a transgender woman walking by a police station in Harlem.
In August of 2013, Islan Nettles was walking in upper Manhattan with a few friends. She was passing a police station when she and two of her friends were spotted by a group of at least seven men. One of those men walked up to Nettles and hit her in the face with his fist, knowing her down to the ground. Unconscious, she was taken to the hospital, where she was placed on life support. Nettles never regained consciousness and died after being removed from life support days later. She was just 21 years old.
Today, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance announced the arrest of 24-year old James Dixon, who is being charged with manslaughter for the death of Islan Nettles.
“Over the past 18 months, my Office has exhaustively investigated this case with the primary objective of making sure that justice is served for Islan Nettles,†DA Vance said in a statement. “A grand jury has voted to indict James Dixon on charges of manslaughter and assault for attacking this young transgender woman on a Harlem street. Her serious injuries caused her death days later.â€
Dixon, just past midnight on August 17, 2013, “struck Ms. Nettles in the face with a closed fist between W. 147th and 148th Streets, knocking her to the ground,” the District Attorney’s statement charges. “The back of her head hit the pavement, causing a serious brain injury, and leaving the victim unconscious.”
Dixon “then struck the victim repeatedly with a closed fist, causing further serious brain injury,” and he “then fled the scene. As a result of her injuries, Ms. Nettles was declared brain-dead on August 20th and taken off life support two days later.”
The DA’s statement does not mention motive, nor does it state the attack was a hate crime, although NCRM’s reporting at the time stated, “Once the men learned the women were transgender, they physically and verbally attacked, with homophobic slurs.”
Nettles’ LinkedIn page read, “Making my way into the Fashion industry has been my target since middle school. Fashion became a definite decision for my life after my first show with my hand designed garments in highschool at the 11th grade…Â Creative,energetic, determined, social, positive and anti-violence are some words to describe myself.”
UPDATE:
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Image of Islan Nettles via LinkedIn