Angie Zapata (August 5, 1989 July 17, 2008) was an American

trans woman A trans woman or a transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity, may experience gender dysphoria, and may transition; this process commonly includes hormone replacement therapy and so ...

beaten to death in

Greeley, Colorado Greeley is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,795 at the 2020 United States Census, an increase of 17.12% since the 2010 ...

. Her killer, Allen Andrade, was convicted of

first-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...

and committing a

hate crime A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demograph ...

, because he murdered her after learning she was

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

. The case was the first in the nation to get a conviction for a hate crime involving a transgender victim, which occurred in 2009. Zapata's story and murder were featured on

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

's November 1, 2009 '' Aquí y Ahora'' television show.

Early life

Zapata was born on August 5, 1989, in

Brighton, Colorado Brighton is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality city located in Adams County, Colorado, Adams and Weld County, Colorado, Weld List of counties in Colorado, counties, Colorado, United States. Brighto ...

. From an early age, Zapata was feminine and expressed an attraction to boys. In middle school, Zapata disclosed her female gender identity to family and close friends. She adopted the name "Angie" when amongst family, while presenting as male in public. At the age of 16, she began living full-time as a woman. Zapata had three sisters and an older brother, Gonzalo. Her family was supportive, although her mother worried for her safety.

Murder and trial

Zapata was 18 when she met Allen Andrade (aged 31 at the time) through the mobile phone social network MocoSpace. According to Andrade, the two met on July 15, 2008, and spent nearly three days together, during which Zapata performed oral sex on Andrade but refused to let Andrade touch her. Andrade suspected Zapata was transgender after seeing photographs of her and confirmed she was transgender after grabbing her genitals after confronting her, to which she said "I am all woman". He subsequently began beating her—first with his fists and then with a fire extinguisher —until she was dead. Zapata attempted to sit up and "gurgled” but Andrade hit her on the head again to make sure she was dead. In the arrest affidavit, Andrade said he thought he had "killed it" before leaving in Zapata's car with the murder weapon and other incriminating evidence. Andrade was arrested near his residence driving Zapata's car. The possibility of prosecuting the case as a hate crime was pressed by Zapata's family. The actual trial began on April 16, 2009. During the trial, the jury heard jailhouse conversations in which Andrade told a girlfriend that "gay things must die". Part of Andrade's confession was deemed inadmissible as police had ignored Andrade's attempt to invoke his

right to remain silent The right to silence is a legal principle which guarantees any individual the right to refuse to answer questions from law enforcement officers or court officials. It is a legal right recognized, explicitly or by convention, in many of the worl ...

. On April 22, 2009, Andrade was found guilty of first-degree murder, hate crimes, aggravated motor vehicle theft, and identity theft. He was sentenced to

life in prison Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

without the possibility of parole. As Andrade had six prior felony convictions, the judge dubbed him a "habitual criminal" at his May 8, 2009 sentencing trial for the hate crime and theft convictions. This added additional 60 years to his sentence. As of October 2015, Andrade is serving his time at Limon Correctional Facility.

Dedication

The 2011 novel ''The Butterfly and the Flame'' by Dana De Young was dedicated in part to Zapata's memory.

Ozomatli Ozomatli is an American rock band, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They are known both for their vocal activist viewpoints and incorporating a wide array of musical styles – including salsa, jazz, funk, reggae, hip hop, and others. The group ...

references Zapata in their song "Gay Vatos in Love", on their 2010 album '' Fire Away''.

References

External links

Angie Zapata
via Respectance.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Zapata, Angie 1989 births 2008 deaths American murder victims Deaths by beating in the United States LGBT people from Colorado Transgender women American transgender people Violence against trans women People murdered in Colorado American victims of anti-LGBT hate crimes People from Brighton, Colorado 20th-century American LGBT people 21st-century American LGBT people History of women in Colorado