Death of Santonio Coleman, a gender-nonconforming person, is being investigated as a homicide in Georgia

Santonio “San” Coleman, a 48-year-old Black gender-nonconforming person, was found critically injured on a walking trail in Athens, Ga., October 19 and died shortly afterward at a local hospital. Athens-Clarke County police are investigating Coleman’s death as a homicide.

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Some friends and family members have referred to Coleman as a gay man, others as a transgender woman. “While San was femme presenting in social media and their daily life, their chosen identity isn’t explicitly clear,” notes a Human Rights Campaign press release. HRC has decided to identify Coleman as a gender-nonconforming person and use they/them pronouns, and The Advocate will do so as well.

Police did not offer details on Coleman’s injuries but said they consider the death suspicious enough to merit a homicide investigation, according to local media.

Coleman’s loved ones offered fond remembrances at a celebration of life November 2. Coleman often styled hair for friends and “regularly attended every cookout, party and family function and was known as a protective, reliable person,” reports The Red & Black, a student publication at the University of Georgia, which has its main campus in Athens.

“My cousin would do anything for anybody,” Sharday Johnson, who spoke at the event, said of Coleman. She described Coleman as “outgoing, confident … and great with kids.”

“I just want justice, and my family wants justice,” Johnson added. “That’s all we’re asking God for, is justice.”

Coleman is survived by their mother, five siblings, and many extended family members.

Police ask that anyone with information that may help in the investigation contact Detective Christina Bradshaw at Christina.Bradshaw@accgov.com or (762) 400-7323.

“San’s death is not just a tragedy for those that loved them but is a loss to the entire trans community,” Tori Cooper, director of community engagement for HRC’s Transgender Justice Initiative, said in the release. “As we mourn the loss of another one of our trans siblings, we must not allow this injustice to dim the light of such a beautiful spirit. San deserved so much better, and although they are gone far too soon, we must keep their memory alive by continuing to fight back against those that seek to phase us trans folks out. We are resilient people, and we aren’t going anywhere.”

A GoFundMe campaign is raising money for Coleman's funeral expenses.

Coleman is at least the 29^th trans, nonbinary, or gender-nonconforming person to have died by violence in the U.S. in 2024. There are likely many more, given deadnaming or misgendering by police or media, or lack of reporting at all.