Body Found In Lake Identified As Trans Activist Elise Malary

EVANSTON, IL — Police said the body found in Lake Michigan this week in Evanston has been identified as transgender activist Elise Malary, who had been reported missing from her Evanston home a week earlier.

Malary's body was found floating in the water by the rocks in Garden Park, in the 500 block of Sheridan Square, around 4:30 p.m. Thursday, according to police.

The cause and manner of her death has yet to be determined, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office. Police said detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances of her death.

On March 9, Malary resigned via email from her job as an administrative clerk with the Civil Rights Bureau of the Illinois Attorney General's Office.

Family and friends said they had not heard from her since then. A missing person report was filed with Evanston police on March 11.

Police found her cell phone and laptop left behind in her unlocked apartment on Hinman Avenue, and her car was found parked in a lot a few blocks from her house. Malary lived less than half a mile west of where her body was found.

Malary, a board member of the Andersonville LGBTQIA advocacy group Chicago Therapy Collective, had been due to receive a 2022 Trans Visibility Award on March 31.

Iffy Ladden, founder and director of the collective, said Malary’s death was a tremendous loss to Chicago’s LGBTQ+ community.

"Elise Malary was an incredible person. She was a proud Black Transgender Haitian Woman and a tenacious activist. Elise was both gentle and fierce and people were drawn to her energy, contagious smile, and kindness. Elise was never without a thoughtful comment or gesture — this made her incredibly special as a friend and powerful as an activist — she put people at ease,” Ladden said in a statement. “Now more than ever we must continue uplifting, protecting, and celebrating Black Trans Women. Elise shone bright light into the world: I hope that we all take in that light and shine it forward.”

Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued a statement Saturday expressing condolences to Malary’s family and friends.

“Today is a devastating day for the Office of the Attorney General. After hoping for several days that our friend and colleague Elise Malary would be safely reunited with her family, friends and loved ones, we have received confirmation of the unthinkable,” Raoul said.

“Elise was a valued member of our Civil Rights Bureau who, as a tireless advocate for the LGBTQ community, was passionate about her work. Her kindness and infectious smile will be missed by those who worked with her,” he said. “The Attorney General’s office has lost a member of our family, and as an office, we are heartbroken.”

Anyone with information that could aid the death investigation was asked to contact the Evanston Police Department's detective bureau.

Earlier: Woman's Body Found In Lake Michigan In Evanston