Trans News/ Issues

[EnderD_503]

Detroit Police investigators are searching for a transgender teen who has been missing for two weeks.

Henry Hilliard, Jr., 19, also known as Shelley or Treasure, was last seen at 1:20 a.m. Oct. 23 in the 900 block Longfellow wearing a silver dress, according to request for help issued by the Detroit Police Monday.

A cab driver that Hilliard often used for rides dropped Hilliard off at a home where three men were waiting for her, his mother, Lyniece Nelson, said today.

But Hilliard immediately called the driver back, voicing concern about the situation, Nelson said.

The driver "started to hear her say, 'What are you doing,' then scream out loud 'No,' then her phone dropped, a few muffling noises, then the phone went dead," Nelson said. "By the time he got back around the corner, there was no one in sight."

Hilliard, who models and does hair, hasn't contacted family members or posted on Facebook, both which typically happen every day, Nelson said.

Hilliard has a piercing on the left eyebrow and several tattoos including a design of cherries on the upper right arm, according to police.

Anyone with information is asked to call Detroit Police at 313-596-2200 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-SPEAKUP.

Source: http://www.freep.com/article/2011110...xt|FRONTPAGE|s

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

Source: http://www.freep.com/article/2011110...xt|FRONTPAGE|s

OMG that's scary, I hope they find her safe and sound.

[Nadeest]

I hope to god that they find her, safe and sound, but I fear for her. If you noticed, the paper actually used the correct pronouns for her twice out of three times, which is at least an improvement, though an uneven one.

[EnderD_503]

Originally Posted by Nadeest

I hope to god that they find her, safe and sound, but I fear for her. If you noticed, the paper actually used the correct pronouns for her twice out of three times, which is at least an improvement, though an uneven one.

Yeah. The one place where they mispronouned her is kind of weird, though, cause they use the correct pronoun like quite literally directly before. Very odd. It just looks like really poor editing or something

[EnderD_503]

Unfortunately it seems that Shelley's body has been officially identified by her mother.

I'm a little confused by the reports, though. They say that she's been missing since the 23rd of October, but that they found a torso later the same day, that was only identified by the mother yesterday. It just seems a bit odd to me. If she was missing since that day, wouldn't they have considered the torso they found the same day and had it identified sooner?

Torso found in Detroit identified as missing transgender teen
Josh Katzenstein/ The Detroit News

Detroit— The Wayne County Medical Examiner's office has confirmed the death of 19-year-old Shelley Hilliard, a transgender teen also known as Treasure, after her mother identified her torso this morning.

The teen, who was born Henry Hilliard, went missing in the early hours of Oct. 23 and was last seen on the 900 block of Longfellow on Detroit's west side.

The Medical Examiner's office received her torso later on Oct. 23, and Lyniece Nelson, Hilliard's mother, identified her this morning.

Nelson said she had no idea who might've done this.

"She was loved by a lot people, a lot of friends a lot of family," Nelson said. "She just brought joy to everyone that she came in contact with. She was always there for her family."

jkatzenstein@detnews.com

(313) 222-2019

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20111110/...#ixzz1dPwSwqVq

[EnderD_503]

I've just read some more details about the murder, which is apparently more gruesome than the above article really articulated. Apparently, her torso was found burned and hidden under a mattress by a highway.

DETROIT (WJBK) - A mother is in tremendous pain after learning her 19-year-old child, who she thought was missing, was in fact murdered in an horrific way.

The body of Shelley Hilliard, a transgender also known as Henry, was found on Detroit's east side on Bewick, just a torso that had been set on fire and covered with a mattress.

"I don't know anybody that would want to do this to her, to do anything to her," said Lyniece Nelson, the victim's mother.

The last anyone had heard from Hillard was the night of October 23rd. Nelson says her daughter had a date and a cab driver dropped her off at a home in the 900 block of Longfellow.

Hilliard asked the cab driver to stay on the phone until she knew it was safe.

"She didn't feel comfortable, to stay on phone with her. He heard her saying a few phrases and heard her saying 'no,' her phone dropped and it was muffled, scuffling noises and then it went dead," Nelson explained.

However, that cab driver never called police, just a friend of Hilliard's who eventually told her mother about what happened.

A few days later, Nelson filed a missing persons report with Detroit Police.

Nelson held out hope, but nearly three weeks later her worst nightmare came true. She got a call from the Wayne County Morgue. Investigators identified Hilliard by some cherry tattoos on her upper arm.

"They showed me the pictures and that was my baby," Nelson said.

It appears Hilliard was killed some time after she was dropped off at that Longfellow address and when parts of her body were discovered on Bewick early that next morning.

"Michele's death wouldn't be the first in our community," said Laura Hughes.

She is the director of the Ruth Ellis Center in Highland Park -- a safe place for lesbian, gay and transgender youth. Hilliard had spent a lot of time there over the last couple of years.

"It's a time for us to reach out an outpouring of love to support her, her friends, her family and to really demand that within our community it's not acceptable for this to happen to a child," Hughes told us.

Hilliard's vicious murder will continue to haunt her mother, who says she will not rest until her killer is caught.

"Whoever did this, you can't hide from God. You can try, but you can't hide from God," she said.

We're told it was a police liaison that works with the morgue that was able to make the connection between the missing persons report and the body.

Source: http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news...en-20111110-ms

God, this is really sickening.

[Greyson]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

I've just read some more details about the murder, which is apparently more gruesome than the above article really articulated. Apparently, her torso was found burned and hidden under a mattress by a highway.



Source: http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news...en-20111110-ms

God, this is really sickening.

I don't pretend to understand why and how such heartless acts, the taking of a human life appears to be so easy to do, for some. May she rest in some sort of peace and her mother, may she find some relief from the hell she must be going through.

[msW8ing]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

I've just read some more details about the murder, which is apparently more gruesome than the above article really articulated. Apparently, her torso was found burned and hidden under a mattress by a highway.



Source: http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news...en-20111110-ms

God, this is really sickening.

Why didn't the cab driver call 911?? Is the cab since he is the only witness giving a description of these animals to the police?? It said that this cab driver was one that she used regularly. Why wouldn't he have walked her to her door to make sure she was safe?? I personally would never allow a young lady to get out of my vehicle with 3 men standing there. I don't understand how some people can live with themselves.