DENVER -- Police are looking for a man who viciously assaulted a transgender woman in LoDo during the early morning hours of April 28.
Amber Nicole, 23, said she and several friends had gone out to the View House for a night on the town.
They left the nightclub around 1:15 a.m. and were on their way to their car when Nicole was assaulted.
She said she doesn't remember the attack, but does remember feeling threatened beforehand, so much so that she asked a friend to start recording with a cell phone.
The assault dislocated her jaw and left her face bloodied.
"I felt I was being choked," she said. "Then I realized it was from the pressure of my jaw resting on my neck."
When Nicole's mom, Juls Martinez, arrived at the hospital, she couldn't believe her eyes.
"I was just horrified," she said. "Really scared. My baby was just lying there and she was gurgling on her blood."
Doctors wired Ms. Nicole's jaw shut.
She told Denver7 it could be eight weeks before the wires are removed.
Feeling different at an early age
Nicole said she knew she was different at an early age. While her sister received colorful dresses and skirts, she, raised as a boy, received t-shirts and jeans.
"I thought her clothes were beautiful," she said. "I wondered why I couldn't have them."
Nicole said she was 18 or 19 when she accepted that she "liked boys," and was transgender.
Martinez said she initially had difficulty accepting her child as transgender due to religious reasons, but is now very accepting.
"As a mom, I just think my daughter should be able to go anywhere, just like the rest of us," she said. "I'm angry that people think they can...hurt a beautiful girl like that."
Nicole agrees.
"Just because you don't identify with someone's way of living, doesn't mean you should hurt them," she said. "We shouldn't be forced to live another way because it's easier for someone to understand."
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After discussing the attack with family members and friends, Nicole decided to go public with what happened.
"I want people to know it's not okay," she said. "You shouldn't put your hands on anybody."
Sativa told Denver7 that a "multi-level" benefit entertainment show, called Beautiful Soul, will be held Wednesday at Blush & Blu, to help raise funds for the victim.
"We have drag queens, we have burlesque, we have boylesqe, we have singers and dancers," Sativa said. "It's a $10 donation at the door."
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Transgender woman viciously attacked in LoDo; mom believes it was a hate crime
Police are looking for a man who viciously assaulted a transgender woman in LoDo, early Sunday morning.
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