Dominic DuPree, Gender-Nonconforming Entrepreneur, Gunned Down in Chicago

Dominic DuPree, 25, a Black gender-nonconforming person, was shot to death October 13 in Chicago.

DuPree was in a vehicle when they were shot multiple times, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. They were pronounced dead at the scene. No arrests has been made.

DuPree, also known as Dominic Palace, was an entrepreneur who operated the businesses Private Protection Division LLC in Gary, Ind., and Hondo IV Lawncare & Snow Removal LLC.

“Dominic’s social media is filled with Chicago sports teams and athletes, political figures, Tyler Perry movies, and their favorite TV shows,” Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents notes.

DuPree was the fourth gender-nonconforming person killed in the U.S. in 2023 and the second gender-nonconforming person killed in a month, according to the Human Rights Campaign. They are the 17th transgender or gender-nonconforming person killed in 2023 with a gun, out of more than 20 known victims of fatal violence among this population overall. HRC’s tracking has found that since 2013, at least 231 transgender and gender-nonconforming victims of fatal violence have been killed with a firearm, approximately 70 percent of all deaths identified to date.

“Dominic had an entrepreneurial spirit and was passionate about providing services to help others,” Tori Cooper, director of community engagement for HRC’s Transgender Justice Initiative, said in a press release. “Dominic was only 25, loved by so many people, and surely had so much more to give. We must all work to stop the horrific gun violence that too often takes the lives of Black transgender and gender-nonconforming people."