BALTIMORE: On Monday, protests were held outside a court in Harford County in opposition to the judge’s decision to free the person who was two weeks ago accused of murdering a woman in Bel Air.
Demonstrators are calling for the transgender victim, Meghan Riley Lewis, to be honored and charged with hate crimes.
The rally was organized by Baltimore Safe Haven, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, to make sure Lewis’ murder wasn’t just another statistic but also a catalyst for change.
According to friends, the woman killed in the Bel Air shooting was a “loving” advocate for the LGBTQ+ area.
“We are worn out. We’re afraid. We’re concerned. This is unjust. According to protester Koryne Davis, that lady did not deserve to die.
According to charging documents, a person delivering food misidentified Lewis and addressed her as “sir” when he shot and killed her in the parking lot of her apartment complex in Bel Air’s English Country Manor area on December 27. That sparked an altercation.
Iya Dammons of Maryland Safe Haven stated that “Harford County is ultimately sending a message to LGBTQ people that they are not treating transgender people fairly.”
The judge’s decision to place the suspect, 47-year-old Brian Delen, on GPS house monitoring infuriates activists.
Renee Lau of Maryland Safe Haven stated, “This person took a life.” He “took the life of someone who cared and who would treat him with the same respect as she would her own babies.” Additional research needs to be done on this. A person facing a second-degree death charge should not be allowed to go free, and Meghan is unable to speak for herself.
According to Delen’s public defender, he had a “solid self-defense explanation.”
According to the common keeper, Delen reportedly dialed 911 after Lewis was shot and administered first aid on his own.
Lewis was defenseless.
The Harford County state’s attorney provided a statement to WJZ. It stated that Delen was being held without bail at the request of the prosecution.
Prosecutors stated that they are “working carefully with the Bel Air Police Department and the investigators assigned to this scenario, who are conducting a thorough investigation, examine all information, and determine what additional charges are ideal” in relation to any potential hate crime charge. Devastating is the loss of any life in our community.
You can view the complete statement below.
As a mother figure and ardent supporter of her community who frequently ended discussions by urging her companions to “be beautiful,” the protesters vowed to continue fighting for Lewis.
Lewis was at least the 21st trans woman to die in 2023, according to the non-profit Human Rights Campaign.
“In this area, we are losing a family. She did everything she could to assist people. This person had a significant impact on our community in many ways. According to her companion Lia Scher, she had an impact on more people than we can count. She fought for our safety, so fighting for her is the least we may do.
Lewis’s companions expressed their shock at the murder of a person they knew
to be kind and sympathetic to WJZ.
“I was utterly horrified,” Zosia Zaks remarked. “At first, I didn’t even believe it.”
Lewis, according to Zaks, often put others before herself. According to her friends, she established a support group for transgender people seeking life-saving surgery in Baltimore and welcomed anyone in need.
January 25 is the date of the next hearing in this case.
Delen may spend up to 85 years in prison if found guilty.
