MINNEAPOLIS — Savannah Ryan Williams' friends say she grew during Tea Time, a support group for transgender women, at The Aliveness Project.
There, she would join others to talk about issues, fears and joy.
On Wednesday, the group gathered for another reason. They talked about Savannah Ryan Williams' alleged murder and hate toward their community.
"She was full of life," said Luna Hernandez, who met her at the group. "It's very unfortunate that her life got taken away."
Court documents say 25-year-old Damarean Kaylon Bible admitted to shooting Williams in the head. He told police she approached him for a sexual encounter but he began to feel "suspicious." After the act, he shot and killed her, according to paperwork. Bible confessed after police found surveillance video of him at the scene near the Lake Street light rail station.
Paperwork says while in jail, Bible told his dad he “just murdered someone.” It reads that he felt sorry for killing the victim and knew he wasn’t God, but he “had to do it.”
"It's a hate crime," said Amber Muhm, who finds a feeling of safety at Tea Time.
"We have a right to life," said State Representative Leigh Finke. "Savannah had a right to live; she should be alive. There is no other detail that matters. Being murdered and being murdered in the way that this happened is gruesome."
Finke used to go to Tea Time. She shares feelings of anxiety with the women here.
"It just needs to stop," said Muhm. "We have to be able to walk in public and just be constantly looking over our shoulder and constantly worried about what's going to happen."
"We are people at the end of the day and we are humans just like everybody else," said Celeste Grignon-Juarez, who got to know Williams over the past few months. "Losing her so tragically after her making so many great improvements in life was really sad. Nobody deserves to die this way. But it's not an uncommon way for trans women to die this way."
"The loss of yet another member of our trans community is a source of deep pain for all of us," read a statement from The Aliveness Project. "Acts of discrimination, bigotry, and hatred have no place in our community."
On Thursday, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty released a statement about Williams' death and other recent violent acts believed to be directed toward the LGBTQ+ community, saying transgender folks "deserve to live authentically and be free from threats and violence."
The statement reads, in part:
“If we are to help all members of the community feel safe, they must believe that law enforcement will not rest until the people who commit violence are identified and held accountable. We will do our part. We will continue to aggressively prosecute gun violence to help all members of the community feel safe.
"This particular case remains under investigation. So while we cannot get into specific details, we can commit to doing what we do in every case, which is to do everything in our power to understand the facts and prosecute the case appropriately. If the investigation reveals sufficient evidence to prove bias motivation beyond a reasonable doubt, we would prosecute accordingly.”
Bible's bail is set at $1 million. The Aliveness Project says folks in the community can go to Tea Time if they have feelings of uncertainty.
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