Woman's Body Found In Lake Michigan In Evanston

EVANSTON, IL — A death investigation is underway after a woman's body was found in Lake Michigan Thursday.

Around 4:30 p.m., Evanston police and fire personnel were called to Garden Park in the 500 block of Sheridan Square, for a report of a body in the water along the rocks, according to Cmdr. Ryan Glew.

Fire crews retrieved the person's corpse and transported it to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office, where an autopsy was scheduled for Friday morning.

The medical examiner's office described the dead person as a Black woman, but her identity has not yet been determined.

Evanston detectives have been investigating the recent disappearance of 31-year-old Elise Malary. Malary was reported missing on March 11, two days after family members last heard from her, police said.

Malary is a prominent transgender activist who serves on the board of the Chicago Therapy Collective, an Andersonville nonprofit LGBTQIA advocacy group, and on the community advisory group for Equality Illinois.

She had been due to receive a 2022 Trans Visibility Award from the group Life Is Work, a West Side-based trans-led social service and advocacy organization, at the group's first ever Chicago Trans Visibility Pageant on March 31.

Two members of the Chicago City Council from the Far North Side have joined calls for anyone with knowledge of the circumstances of Malary's disappearance to contact authorities.

"Elise has been a good friend of mine and someone who has a leader and advocate for the trans community. Her smile and energy light up every room she is in," Ald. Andre Vasquez, 40th Ward, said in a social media post. "She was a 40th Ward neighbor and had moved to Evanston. We all want to see her back and safe at home."

"Elise Malary is an amazing advocate and person," 49th Ward Ald. Maria Hadden said in a post. "She’s part of the [Rogers Park] community as well. Let’s help bring her home to safety."

Police said her apartment was found with its doors unlocked, and her cell phone and laptop had been left behind. On Monday, her car was found a few blocks from her house in a city-owned parking lot at Hinman Avenue and South Boulevard.

The day she went missing, Malary quit her job as an administrative clerk in the Civil Rights Bureau of the Illinois Attorney General's Office via email, according to police. Her sister told Block Club Chicago news of the resignation came as a shock.

“I’m very confused with what’s been going on," Fabiana Malary told Block Club, "and I’m still trying to put the pieces together to figure out where my sister is."

UPDATE: Body Found In Lake Identified As Trans Activist Elise Malary