News outlets misgender Detroit shooting victims as LGBT community faces attacks

One victim is dead and two others injured after a series of shootings in Detroit's Palmer Park, all of which involved attacks on LGBT people.

According to ABC affiliate WXYZ, the third victim, a gay man, was found dead last Friday morning in a parking lot close to the park's pool, but after the shooting, the killer crashed his vehicle and abandoned it and the murder weapon.

Detroit Police reported to DeadlineDetroit.com that they are questioning a person of interest in the case, but have not released the suspect's name nor the names of any victims.

The nonlethal shootings of two trans women, 20 and 25 years old, took place over a two day span the prior weekend.

Detroit Police and media have incorrectlyidentified the victims as "transgender men" in multiple reports, sowing confusion about the gender identities and orientations of the victims.

Raw Story contacted Detroit News writer Tom Greenwood who said that he has received numerous emails about the confusion, but has no plans to issue a correction.

"What we really need to do is get these guys off the streets," he said, although it was unclear whether he meant the victims or the suspected shooter.

The area around Palmer Park is heavily populated by LGBT people and the park -- which features running trails, tennis courts and a pool -- has a reputation for prostitution activity after dark. Detroit Police speculated that the victims may have been sex workers.

M-Live writer Gus Burns responded to queries on the social medium Twitter that "Police said transgender, truth is they don't know how victims identified own gender."

Watch video about this story, embedded below via WXYZ-TV:

[image of hand holding pistol via Shutterstock.com]