TRANSGENDER WOMAN BEATEN AND STABBED IN PUERTO RICO

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A transgender woman was hospitalized recently after police said she was stabbed and violently beaten in the latest case involving a member of the U.S. territory’s LGBTQ community.

Authorities issued a statement saying Nicole López, 33, told police that the incident occurred after she got into an argument with several people in her home shortly after midnight. No further details were provided.

López’s friends told WAPA TV that her skull is fractured and that she will need reconstructive surgery.

The incident comes a week after a transgender woman was fatally shot in southwest Puerto Rico.

A total of sixth such killings have been reported on the island this year, including two transgender women who were found in a charred car in April.