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SANTA FE, Argentina. Alejandra Victoria Ironici was murdered on August 22, 2022, in her home in Santa Fe. Her partner, HB, is the sole defendant in the trial that began on Tuesday, March 12, and is scheduled to conclude on March 23. At the start of the proceedings, when he took the stand, HB admitted to murdering Alejandra Ironici but denied the sexual abuse charge against him.

“I take responsibility for attempting to take Alejandra Ironici’s life, but I will not take responsibility for having abused her. I have done many things wrong, and I feel the need to express it. I didn’t do it before because I didn’t think. What’s more, I don’t even remember how I did it, but I know I did it,” he said before a court and several surprised legal teams.

The plaintiff's lawyer, Sofía Basso, explained in an interview with Agencia Presentes that the trial schedule will now have to be restructured. “There is evidence that no longer needs to be presented because it is considered proven based on the witnesses' admission. For the second day, they summoned about 15 witnesses, but only three will appear. We are already working with certain aspects of the trial that have been admitted as fact,” she explained.

The Court – made up of Pablo Busaniche (president), Sebastián Szeifert and Susana Luna – will allow the transmission of the closing arguments and the sentence via YouTube.

HB faces charges of "aggravated intentional homicide against a woman when the act is perpetrated by a man and involves gender-based violence." This carries a sentence of life imprisonment. Furthermore, the legal team led by Basso also requested that the Santa Fe state be held responsible for the crime and that the social transphobic murder of Alejandra Ironici be recognized.

The great militant

On Monday the 11th, the 8M march took place in the city of Santa Fe—postponed due to the bus strike on Friday—and a chant echoed throughout the entire procession that connected Plaza del Soldado with Plaza 25 de Mayo: “Alejandra Ironici, present, now and forever.” In the lead-up to the trial for her murder, many voices recalled the inspiration that Alejandra represented for many generations.

Priscila Martínez, current president of the Movement for Ethnic and Religious Integration (MISER) —the organization Ale created and led—spoke with Presentes about the scope of Ironici's legacy. “Her death is a very heavy blow to the community; she was and continues to be. Alejandra is incomparable, and her story must be recorded in history. It was a watershed moment in the fight for rights in the capital of Santa Fe. Not only in Argentina, but also internationally, she is highly recognized,” she emphasized. She added that they have great confidence in the work done by the Prosecutor's Office to bring the case to trial quickly and to secure a conviction that will set a national precedent.

"I trust that justice will prevail."

Priscila's interpretation of Alejandra's role in history is not an exaggeration. The start of the trial for her transfemicide coincided with the 12th anniversary of the day she received her national identity document (DNI) that recognized her gender identity through administrative channels with the government of the province of Santa Fe. She was also the first person in the province to undergo vaginoplasty in a public hospital and to be hired by the government. Furthermore, she was a tireless activist in the fight for greater rights for the trans community. Among other actions, she promoted and secured a quota ordinance in the capital city and at the National University of the Littoral, where she was studying law.

Similarly, Noly Trujillo—a trans survivor and close friend of Ironici—told Presentes : “I have a lot of faith in the Prosecutor's Office and the judges. We all hope the sentence will be life imprisonment, and I trust that it will be.”

Mercedes, Alejandra's sister, also highlighted her legacy and expressed her confidence in the legal process. “My sister was a great activist, a fighter for rights. (…) I ask that justice be served and that she receive a life sentence. It's the least she deserves,” she said, visibly moved.

A central background

The prosecutor in the case is Alejandra del Río Ayala; meanwhile, two teams have been presented on behalf of the plaintiffs. On one side, the Center for Access to Justice (CAJ) , which is supporting Ironici's family, is represented by lawyers Laura Gerard and Vivian Galeano. On the other side, the Association of Trans and Lesbian Feminist Lawyers and the Civil Association for LGBT Public Policies are represented by Basso along with Daiana Araya, Marcela Mancini, and Vanesa Vargas.

“The prosecution requested life imprisonment for the crimes of aggravated homicide due to the relationship, the context of violence, and the hate crime,” Gerard said before entering the building.

He added: “The investigation was solid, the evidence is compelling. We hope that we will take advantage of this opportunity as a society to have this debate and this leap forward in jurisprudence.”

A social transvesticide

For her part, Basso explained the importance of also considering the concept of social transvesticide. She emphasized that, in a national context of setbacks in rights, making visible the absence or ineffectiveness of public policies to prevent violence against trans and travesti people will be a valuable precedent.

“We filed the lawsuit because we believe that Alejandra’s death, given her life story and her work in the field of Human Rights, had a profound impact on activist organizations in these areas . So we decided to file the lawsuit to highlight the state’s responsibility in the context of this social transphobic murder. We understand that alongside the legal responsibility of the person who committed the crime, there is an even greater responsibility on the part of the state due to the context,” she explained to Presentes . She continued: “When we presented our opening statements, we argued that this is an opportunity for the Court to make history.”

Along these lines, the aim is to achieve preventative and reparative measures for a group historically affected by structural violence perpetrated by the State. “We want the provincial government to be ordered to develop public policies that include measures to prevent future violence and provide reparations to the victims,” the lawyer explained.