Milwaukee man pleads not guilty in shooting death of Black trans woman
Chris RamirezA Milwaukee man charged with killing a Black transgender woman appeared in court Monday and denied playing a role in Chyna Long's death.
Antonio S. Currin was arraigned Monday in Milwaukee County Circuit Court before Judge Mark Sanders. Currin entered a not guilty plea through his attorney, Helmi Hamad, of Milwaukee.
He's scheduled to be in court again Nov. 30 for a status conference.
Long, 31, is the fourth identified Black transgender woman to die by homicide in Milwaukee since June 2022, a series of violence that has shaken Milwaukee’s LGBTQ+ community.
The four homicides come during a time of rising violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people, along with anti-transgender rhetoric and legislation in the U.S.
A criminal complaint accuses Currin of shooting Long on the 7300 block of North 89th Street the morning of Oct. 8, but doesn't detail any possible motive.
Police say in the complaint Currin matched the description of a man seen on 89th Street standing outside a tan Chevrolet Impala and talking to someone in the vehicle at 7:47 a.m. A series of gunshots were heard at that time.
More:Community calls on better enforcement of hate crimes against transgender people
Police arrived and found Long lying in the street with gunshot wounds.
Currin was later identified to police and was questioned. He told officers he had been at work that day from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Police obtained records from his employer, which is less than two miles from the homicide scene, showing Currin clocked into work at 7:52 a.m.
Surveillance footage showed him arriving at the job site in the same Chevrolet three minutes before clocking in.
Currin was convicted in 2013 of fleeing law enforcement. The felony conviction would have barred him from possessing a firearm.
More:Milwaukee police will no longer immediately report the gender of crime victims