Trans Woman Killed Last Month, Dylan Gurley’s Family in Mourning

Yet another trans woman has been killed. Dylan Gurley, 20, is from Little Elm, Texas. She’s one of 24 trans and gender non-conforming people who’ve been killed so far this year, and one of four killed in July alone.

According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegraph, it was only a few weeks before her 21st birthday when police found her unconscious in a Denton, Texas home on July 23 around 11 p.m. She appeared to have “traumatic injuries” and was promptly sent to Medical City Denton, where she unfortunately died about 40 minutes after her arrival. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s case records deem the cause of death as “blunt and sharp force injuries with strangulation.”

People who knew Gurley say she was experiencing homelessness around the time of her death. Not much else has been reported about the murder, but the investigation is still ongoing. So far, there are no suspects, and no arrests have been made. Police are asking anyone with information to call 940-349-7977 or submit tips anonymously at DentonCountyCrimeStoppers.com.

Gurley’s sister, Senica Ciarallo, started a GoFundMe to ask for donations to help the family “give Dylan the memorial she wanted and deserved.” She also mentioned that the family hopes to buy urns and bracelets or necklaces for Gurley’s ashes. On August 18, Gurley’s 21st birthday, the family held an event to commemorate her life.

“We are just trying to put the pieces back together as best as we can and appreciate any and all help,” Ciarallo says.

Gurley is not the only trans woman killed this year. Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents report that since 2020, it has tracked the violent deaths of more than 35 transgender people aged 21 and younger. 

Tori Cooper, Director of Community Engagement for the HRC’s Transgender Justice Initiative, notes that Gurley is the 36th trans person killed in Texas since the LGBTQ+ advocacy organization began tracking fatal violence against trans people in 2013. Of those 36 victims, all but one are transgender women. Gurley is also at least the fifth transgender person to be killed while experiencing homelessness in 2024.

“This is tragically not a coincidence,” Cooper writes, emphasizing that 30% of transgender individuals experience homelessness, which puts them at a higher risk of fatal violence.

In its statement honoring Gurley, the HRC also highlights that Texas sees more anti-trans murders than any other state in the U.S.

“Dylan deserved safety while she was alive,” Cooper writes, “and now she deserves justice.”

Image from UnSplash