Atlanta hairdresser, member of LGBTQ community found dead in her apartment

ATLANTA - A South Carolina family wants answers after their loved one was shot and killed in a southwest Atlanta apartment.

Atlanta Police are still searching for the person responsible for Ashley Burton’s murder.

"We didn’t see that coming, very shocked," her brother Patrick revealed.

Burton’s family, who live in Johnson, South Carolina, is still reeling after someone shot and killed the 37-year-old transgender female in her City Park apartment on Fairburn Road earlier this week.

Burton’s mother and brother said they did not know of any enemies she had.

"Ashley was very loved all the way across the board, like from South Carolina to Atlanta," Patrick declared.

Burton’s mother recalled her reaction when two police officers knocked on her door to notify her Tuesday of the unexpected death.

"I started screaming, and the officer asked me to step inside. There were about four of them present. I got hysterical," Emma Burton, her mother, commented.

The family says Ashley was a hairstylist in Atlanta, who was very comfortable in her own skin and as a member of the LGBTQ community. They believe her being transgender had nothing to do with her murder.

"The way my sibling moved in life, it was…take it or leave it. ‘This is how I am.’ You can respect it or neglect it, but Ashley put it out there and let that person know. It’s not going to be a secret," Patrick exclaimed.

In an extraordinary move, the family has already forgiven the killer, who police said is still on the run.

"As a mother, I had forgiven that person when I heard it. I am a God-fearing woman," Ms. Burton boasted.

Atlanta Police are asking anyone with information to give them a call.