Koko Da Doll, star of film on trans sex workers, shot to death

ATLANTA (AP) — Koko Da Doll, an Atlanta woman who gained notice in a documentary about transgender Black women and the dangers they face, was shot to death in Atlanta this week, her sister said.

Kilya Williams and other relatives said police told them the 35-year-old transgender woman, also known as Rasheeda Williams, appears to have been shot Wednesday after leaving an apartment complex west of downtown Atlanta. Her body was found on a sidewalk adjoining a strip mall across a busy street.

Atlanta police on Friday released surveillance video of a person in a sports jersey walking up to the entrance of an apartment building. Authorities said detectives wanted to identify the person “to assist with the current investigation on the homicide.”

Koko had gained notice earlier this year when she and others appeared in the documentary “Kokomo City,” describing her life as a transgender woman, her interactions with Black men as a sex worker, and the threats of violence she sometimes faced.

“I feel like she wanted to get her story out,” Williams said. “She’s not ashamed of who she was. Because if she was ashamed of it, she would have never did the documentary. She was proud of who she was because she came from a loving, accepting family.”…