San Jose s Qmunity District unveiled its first mural April 30 as members of the South Bay LGBTQ community continued to mourn a transgender woman and drag performer who was killed last week.
As the Bay Area Reporter previously reported, Natalia Smüt Lopez, 24, of San Jose was killed April 23. Elijah Cruz Segura, 22, who she d been romantically involved with according to prosecutors, was formally charged with her murder April 29 but has not yet entered a plea. Lopez was featured in the mural, and her family was present at the midday news conference for the unveiling of the 864 square foot public art located on the side of the Splash Video Dance Bar, at the corner of Lightston Alley and Post Street.
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A Union City man will be arraigned April 29 on charges he murdered a transgender woman last week in Milpitas.
The killing of drag performer Natalia Smüt Lopez, 24, of San Jose, sent shockwaves through the South Bay s LGBTQ community. She is the 16th victim of anti-transgender violence this year in the United States, according to the Project MORE Foundation, a nonprofit service provider to South Bay LGBTQs.
Prosecutors allege that Elijah Cruz Segura, 22, stabbed Lopez to death early April 23. The two had been dating for several months, the Santa Clara County District Attorney s office stated in a news release.
Segura will continue to be held without bail until the arraignment takes place. It was originally scheduled for the afternoon of April 27 at the San Jose Hall of Justice, but Segura s attorney, Peter Johnson, asked for more time to meet with his client, and that request was granted by Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Vincent J. Chiarello.