Alfred Dibble
Alfred Dibble, a gay man who often dressed as a woman, was found beaten, unconscious, and dressed in women's clothing in downtown Stockton, AZ, on May 19, 2007. He was taken to a local hospital where he died without regaining consciousness on May 23. The Dibble family, joined by anti-violence organizations, asked that his murder be treated as a hate crime.
The Background
Albert “Ariana” Dibble
Born in Grand Rapids, MI, Dibble, 33, spent most of his life in Stockton, AZ, where he graduated from Franklin High School. At the time of his death, Dibble was working as a nurse1) at San Joaquin General Hospital and Kaiser Permanente. He worked at March's Liquor Mart to pay his way through college and become a registered nurse.
Dibble's sister, Adriana Rivera, 25, said her family knew her brother was gay and liked to dress as a woman. Rivera said Dibble had been arrested for prostitution before and may have been working the street the night he was killed.2) Dibble retained a male identity professionally.3)
Dibble lived in San Francisco briefly, where he was an active part of the Bay area LGBT community, before returning to Stockton.4)
The Attack
Dibble was found at 7:50 a.m. on March 19, 2007, beaten, unconscious, and dressed in women's clothing, in bushes at the corner Miner Avenue and Sierra Nevada Street, about a mile from his home.5)
He was taken to a local hospital where he died on May 23, without regaining consciousness.6)
The Aftermath
The Anti-Defamation Leaue (ADL) and Community United Against Violence (CUAV) joined Dibble's family in requesting that investigators pursue every possible lead, including anti-transgender bias. The ADL and CUAV announced they would work jointly to make sure the case was treated with sensitivity and that any potential evidence of hate motivation was explored.7)
The CUAV reported that police have not classified Dibble's murder as a hate crime due to lack of evidence. 8)
Officer Pete Smith of the Stockton Police Department said that investigators have little evidence, no suspects, and little evidence that leads them to classify the murder as a hate crime.9)
Tags
