Accident – Death – Obituary News :

First Openly Nonbinary Judge in Mexico Found Dead After Receiving Death Threats

The first openly nonbinary person to assume a judicial position in Mexico, Jesús Ociel Baena, was found dead in their home in Aguascalientes on Monday. The death came after Baena received death threats due to their gender identity, according to authorities.

The Aguascalientes state prosecutor’s office confirmed that Baena was discovered deceased on Monday morning alongside another individual, identified as their partner by local media and LGBTQ+ rights groups. State prosecutor Jesús Figueroa Ortega revealed in a news conference that the victims displayed injuries apparently caused by a knife or some other sharp object.

“There are no signs or indications to be able to determine that a third person other than the dead was at the site of the crime,” Figueroa Ortega stated.

Mexico Security Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez commented during a press briefing that authorities were investigating the death and were uncertain whether it was a homicide or an accident. It is worth noting that some murder investigations in Mexico have a history of being quickly downplayed by authorities as crimes of passion.

Alejandro Brito, director of the LGBTQ+ rights group Letra S, emphasized that Baena’s visibility on social media made them a target and urged the authorities to consider this context in their investigation. Brito said, “They were a person who received many hate messages, and even threats of violence and death, and you can’t ignore that in these investigations. They, the magistrate, was breaking through the invisible barriers that closed in the nonbinary community.”

Baena, who identified as nonbinary, made history in October 2022 when they assumed the role of magistrate for the Aguascalientes state electoral court. They were believed to be the first nonbinary person in Latin America to hold a judicial position. In June, Baena also became one of the first individuals to be issued Mexico’s nonbinary passports.

Throughout their tenure, Baena regularly shared photos and videos on social media platforms, showcasing their unique style with skirts, heels, and a rainbow fan. They had a substantial following with hundreds of thousands of followers.

“I am a nonbinary person, I am not interested in being seen as either a woman or a man. This is an identity. It is mine, for me, and nobody else,” Baena once posted on X, formerly Twitter, in June. “Accept it.”

Just weeks before their death, Baena was presented with a certificate by the electoral court, recognizing them with gender-neutral pronouns as a “maestre.” This was a significant step in a language historically divided between two genders, male and female.

While Brito acknowledged Mexico’s progress in reducing levels of anti-LGBTQ+ violence in recent decades, his group documented a significant increase in such violence in 2019, with at least 117 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals killed in the country. Many of these incidents involved brutal stabbings and public slayings.

Brito expressed concern that Baena’s death could provoke further acts of violence against queer communities. He stated, “If this was a crime motivated by prejudice, these kinds of crimes always have the intention of sending a message. The message is an intimidation, it’s to say: ‘This is what could happen to you if you make your identities public.’

Authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding Baena’s death.

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