Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

Her name was Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-Mccray. She was 42 years old and identified as a Black transgender woman. She died in Petersburg, Virginia.

On March 13, just before 2 a.m., Petersburg Police were called to the 300 block of Elm Street for a reported shooting. FIrst responders entered a home with “an unsecured door” and found Shyyell’s body. Other reports state that Shyyell was found alive with multiple gunshot injuries, but died at the scene.

If you have any information, contact the Petersburg/Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at (804) 861-1212 or use the P3tips.com app to remain anonymous.

Final arrangements have been scheduled for Friday, March 27, 2026, at 6:00 PM at Johnson Celebration of Life Center in Petersburg, VA.

Honoring Her Life

Shyyell was known as Mabel by her loved ones. She was born and raised in Peterburg, Virginia. She had also lived in Charlotte, North Carolina.

She had worked for a LGBTQ bar in Charlotte and worked with  Nationz Pageantry system. She ran a catering company and started her own pageant company.

In 2021, Mabel reflected on “the trials and tribulations I had to go through when I transitioned.”

In 2023, Mabel was targeted with racist slurs and bias at a Charlotte bar. She responded with a community advocacy effort to address racism in the LGBTQ community.

But most of her social media is filled with advocacy – posts about community events, outreach she organized to local youth, shared content about neighbors experiencing trials or needing help. She reported information about ICE detentions, missing children, and far too many memorial posts for friends and acquaintances.

She lifted up LGBTQ businesses, shared events, and showered love and appreciation on her pageant community.

What struck me was this comment she posted years ago about her 40th birthday (she was 42 at her death.)

She posted “I have no high school diploma, no GED and no formal education past the 9th/10th grade. I have a learning disability thats (sic) aggravating as hell but I’m promising myself that my 40th bday will not be a birthday party but a graduation party.”

It seems like she had a lovely celebration for her 40th birthday, but not yet a graduation. I think about each year when I set a goal and maybe don’t make it, I take for granted I can try again next year or the next milestone. She got two more birthdays and that’s it. Someone robbed her of so many unexplored opportunities.

Shyyell’s most recent posts described a struggle with depression and stress. She also expressed concern about another recent shooting.

Context

As hard as it is to believe, Shyyell’s death from gun violence is the first death of a trans neighbor I’ve memorialized in 2026. I have no doubt there have been other violent deaths, they are just hidden for reasons I laid out earlier this week. Given ShyyeIll’s activism, I hope she wouldn’t mind me using her memorial to honor those who lives were taken in shadows, in silence, and under cover of anti-trans bias.

Shyyell is the first known trans person who died from violence in the US in 2026. She is the first trans woman, the first Black trans woman, and the first BIPOC trans person whose death has been reported.

Virginia has seen its fair share of violence. In 2025, Kasi Rhea  In 2023, Lexus Walker. In 2022, Ariyanna Mitchell and Jasper Aaron Lynch. In 2021, EJ Boykin / Novaa Watson.

There is no information on the investigation, suspects, or anything. Almost every single media report from Virginia outlets used male pronouns to cisgender Shyyell as well as the name she was assigned at birth. That feels like a huge step backward.

Her family used lots of different pronouns, gender indicators, and names. The announcement of her memorial service shows a masc photo wrapped in a rainbow pride flag. It is clear from her content that she was close with her mother and other family members. Clearly, they are trying.

There’s a distinction between how a family represents a loved one and how media and government institutions acknowledge someone’s identity. As I mentioned, there’s been no other reports of violent deaths, so we owe a debt of gratitude to the family and friends whose tributes to Shyyell brought visibility to her life and her death, imperfect as they are.

If her friends and neighbors do want to correct the media, they can reach out to GLAAD for support at press@glaad.org or through a local LGBTQ+ organization. If you get resistance from media outlets or law enforcement, please also reach out to GLAAD or another LGBTQ organization.

Rest in power, Shyyell. Thank you for all that you brought to your community and this world. You showed up repeatedly in many ways, with a generous heart and a desire to create change. You did. I am so very sorry for the violence you experienced. I hope you’ve found comfort and rest.

May your memory be a revolution.

---

Deaths reported in 2025

These individuals are part of the trans community including transgender, nonbinary, gender nonconforming, and gender creative folx. Please do not share this content without attribution. Thank you

1. Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-Mccray – Petersburg, Virginia. March 13, 2026. Age 42.