Transgender

IT WOULDN'T dull their pain - nothing could, not really - but Patrick Michael Brady's loved ones wanted answers, wanted to know who killed the Chester County man in an Old City hotel last Saturday. They may have gotten their answers yesterday. And somehow, everything got worse. Another layer of sadness and confusion was added to a story about the death of a married 49-year-old father who was known by countless people as an outgoing, fun-loving guy. Police officials announced that a transgender prostitute named Herman Burton had been charged with beating and strangling Brady inside Room 812 at the Omni Hotel, at 4th and Chestnut streets, and then setting fire to the room in an attempt to cover up the crime.

NOT SURPRISINGLY, the most candid person in Washington isn't a politician. It's Kye Allums, a transgender member of the George Washington women's basketball team. Yesterday, Allums - who said he is "a male on a female team" - shared his story with the media. He said he decided to talk about his situation because "it got too tough to not be me. " Allums, a 21-year-old junior from suburban Minneapolis, said he has delayed having steroid treatments and/or surgery so that he can stay on the women's team.

The death of a transgender woman in her Point Breeze house on Monday has been ruled a homicide by strangulation and asphyxiation, police said yesterday. The 31-year-old victim, known to friends and neighbors as Stacey and identified by police as Michael Lee, was found half-dressed on the floor of a second-story bedroom by her live-in boyfriend about 9:30 p.m., police said. He called police to the house and is not considered a suspect at this point, said Homicide Sgt. Bob Wilkins.

The longtime boyfriend of 31-year-old Stacey Lee arrived at the couple's Point Breeze rowhouse Monday night after work. He immediately noticed something was not right. "The house light was on," said the boyfriend, 39, referring to a small fixture next to the front door. "It's never on. " The boyfriend of Stacey Lee, a transgender person, asked not to be identified for fear of jeopardizing his job. Police do not consider him a suspect, and said he was at work when she was killed.

A transgender woman was found dead in her Point Breeze home Monday night by her live-in boyfriend. Initial reports said the victim - identified by police as 31-year-old Michael Lee but by neighbors as Stacey - was found with a pillow case around her neck, but Homicide Sgt. Bob Wilkins refuted that yesterday. He said there were no visible signs of trauma to the victim, such as stab or bullet wounds, but he declined to speculate on a cause of death until an autopsy report is released.

HARRISBURG - The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is changing its policy on how transgender people identify themselves on driver's licenses. The department and Equality Pennsylvania announced a settlement Wednesday that allows people to change the gender on their licenses if they are living full-time in their new gender and it can be verified by a licensed medical or psychological caregiver. The previous policy only allowed changes in gender for drivers who could prove they had sexual reassignment surgery.

A transgendered former lifeguard, who alleges she was unfairly fired by the city, appeared today before the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations. Dawn Delpe, 42, of South Philadelphia, filed a complaint in 2005 claiming the City Department of Recreation discriminated against her because she was perceived to be a homosexual male. Delpe, who also describes herself as white and disabled, worked as a part-time lifeguard at a city pool. She said the rec department allowed coworkers and pool patrons to physically and verbally harrass her. She also said the department denied her request to be transferred to a "safer worksite," according to the complaint.

THE BARE, WHITE walls once held 130 awards and honors plaques. Now, after 45 years with the Philadelphia Police Department, Chief Inspector James Tiano was packing up his fourth-floor office at 10th and Spring Garden streets. "I've had a pretty good career," said Tiano, whose last workday is today. "I spent the latter part of my career helping a lot of diverse communities, so it was very satisfying. " Tiano, 65, served simultaneously as police liaison to the Asian-, African- and Caribbean-immigrant and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities - and it has been announced that it's going to take eight deputies to replace him. His compassion for diversity was inspired by Italian-immigrant grandparents.

A PAIR OF paparazzi at Los Angeles International Airport got in a fight while they staked out the best curb position to shoot . . . . . . British singer Pixie Lott. Surely you've heard of Pixie Lott. No? Well, "Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)" was a big hit across the pond, and Pixie's pix must command huge sums from the British tabs in order for paps to fight over her best angle. Airport police spokeswoman Sgt. Belinda Nettles said Saturday that pap Stefan Saad was arrested on suspicion of felony battery after the Friday night scuffle with an unnamed pap. Saad was released Saturday after posting $50,000 bail.

A TRANSGENDER teen girl and Lambda Legal Defense have filed a lawsuit against the city's Youth Study Center and Department of Human Services. The girl alleges that despite being diagnosed with gender identity disorder she was housed with males and subjected to constant verbal and physical abuse. In fact, according to the suit, one Youth Study Center supervisor told this petite girl that he would not call her by her feminine name until she had her genitals removed. Of course, the language he used was much more crude.