Mexico: Investigation underway into the deaths of Ociel Baena, the first non-binary magistrate, and their partner
Ociel Baena, the first non-binary judge, was found dead in their home, along with Dorian Herrera. Activists took to the streets in at least 33 cities across Mexico to pay tribute and demand justice.
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(News updated on November 14)
Mexico City, Mexico. Ociel Baena, a judge of the Electoral Court of Aguascalientes, and his partner, Dorian Herrera, were found dead at their home in the Punta del Cielo subdivision, west of the city of Aguascalientes. The Attorney General's Office of that state reported in a statement and at a press conference that "everything indicates that it could be a personal matter." Baena had been under the protection of the municipal police after requesting protective measures last July due to death threats.
According to the newspaper La Jornada , Manuel Alonso García, the state's public security secretary, confirmed the deaths of both individuals. He stated that the domestic worker found the two people dead upon arriving at the residence.
Yesterday afternoon, at a press conference, Jesús Figueroa Ortega, prosecutor of Aguascalientes, reported that “there is no evidence to suggest that a third person other than the deceased was at the scene. No signs of forced entry were found. We found bloodstains and some indications of injuries apparently caused by sharp objects, and these are the injuries that caused the deaths of these two people.”
National Protocol for the Investigation of Crimes Against LGBT People is being applied . However, during the press conference, he did not mention Baena's gender identity or the sexual orientation of either her or Dorian Herrera, her partner. Furthermore, LGBT activists and individuals denounced the media's portrayal of the incident as a "suicide" and a "crime of passion," based on the state prosecutor's own version of events.
In the last five years, at least 305 violent deaths against LGBT+ people have been recorded, according to data from the National Observatory of Hate Crimes.
Since yesterday, in at least 33 cities in Mexico, LGBTI+ activists have organized acts of remembrance, truth and justice for Bena and Herrera.
First magistrate in the Judiciary l
Ociel Baena was the first non-binary person to hold a public office in the judiciary, serving as an electoral magistrate in the state of Aguascalientes. They also organized the first National Congress on Strategic Litigation for the Defense of the Rainbow Quota in Mexico. Furthermore, they were the first non-binary person to receive a Mexican passport with a non-binary identifier .
Baena filed personal lawsuits to have their gender identity recognized on their identification documents, such as their birth certificate. One of their legal cases served as a precedent for the National Electoral Institute (INE), which is now issuing voter ID cards that recognize non-binary gender identity.
Dorian Herrera was 37 years old and a native of Aguascalientes. According to published reports , he was a lawyer and participated in modeling competitions.
Baena received threats and was the victim of hate speech
Baena had security provided by the Aguascalientes Public Security Secretariat. Last July, he had requested protective measures after receiving death threats.
Baena received death threats after denouncing the murder of Ulises Nava , an LGBT activist from Guerrero, as he left the National Congress of Strategic Litigation for the Defense of the Rainbow Quota in Mexico, an event organized by the judge. Baena, probably the most visible non-binary person in Mexico, was also a victim of hate speech on social media.
Recently, the Christian Lawyers Association and other Catholic organizations filed a series of complaints against her. This came after she dressed up as the Virgin Mary in October and posted a photo of herself on social media. Catholic and Christian organizations called for an “exemplary punishment” for Baena.
They demand that the federal prosecutor's office investigate.
Yesterday, activists took to the streets in at least 33 cities across the country and organized events to commemorate Ociela Baena and Dorian Herrera.
The main demands of activists and dissidents are that this double murder be investigated with a sexual diversity perspective. They also demand that the Attorney General's Office (FGR) take charge of the investigation. The protesters explained that Aguascalientes, being a state governed by the right wing, could obstruct access to justice.
According to data from México Evalúa , Aguascalientes has a 98.9% impunity rate for reported crimes .
During the demonstrations, they also denounced the way the media has reported the event: misgendering Ociel Baena, leaking images that violate the dignity of the victims, and calling the event a "crime of passion".
Ociel Baena and Dorian Herrera were laid to rest this Tuesday at seven in the morning and at 10 am a mass was held for them in the Cathedral of Aguascalientes.
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