Transgender woman fatally shot becomes 14th trans victim killed this year

A transgender woman has been fatally shot in Cleveland, becoming the 14th trans victim in the US in 2018.

Keisha Wells, 58, was found in the car park of an apartment building with a gunshot wound to the abdomen on Detroit Avenue on Sunday.

No arrests have been made yet and the investigation is ongoing, according to Cleveland.com.

The victim’s aunt, Regina Spicer, said Wells was known as “Pokey” to family and friends.

“Pokey liked laughing and telling funny stories about people. But when (she) loved you and cared about you, (she) loved you,” she said.

Sheila Jones, a friend of Wells, told the newspaper: “She was the nicest person ever. But she was a tough cookie. She wouldn’t back down from anyone.”

There have been 113 incidents of fatal violence against transgender and non-binary people since 2013 (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Wells is the 14th known transgender person to have been killed this year.

On the same day, trans woman Cathalina Christina James was killed in Jacksonville, Florida.

James is the third black trans woman to be killed in 2018.

Activist Christina Kittle told local newspaper The Jacksonville: “This isn’t something that should be considered normal. People are dying, this is very serious.”