Suspect Finally Arrested In the Murder of Islan Nettles.

Islan Nettles


On August 17, 2013, just after midnight, Islan Nettles, a transgender woman, was strolling through Harlem with some friends when she was recognized by the a group of men, who brutally beat her into a coma. Nettles was taken off of life support one week after the attack.

The attack occurred on Frederick Douglass Boulevard in Harlem, right by a police station, in a heavily patrolled area. The attack incited the transgender community in New York, who called for justice for Islan Nettles. Activists like transgender actress Laverne Cox helped to bring attention to the situation.

A man named Paris Wilson, was initially arrested for the attack, but witnesses struggled with identifying him. It turns out that Wilson was one of the men with Dixon that fateful night, but he did not carry out the attack. Charges against Wilson were dropped back in 2013.

Now, nearly 2 years later, several news outlets are reporting that James Dixon, 24, has been arrested for the murder of Islan Nettles, 2 years after he confessed to the brutal attack. Prosecutors have not made it clear why it took so long for an arrest to be made.

“I’m overwhelmed,” Delores Nettles, Islan’s mother, said, speaking to DNA Info. “I still want to know the facts, but it’s been a long time coming.”

In 2013, approximately 238 trans individuals were killed worldwide, the United States, the majority were black.