In the early hours of a Tuesday in Florissant, Missouri, a sequence of events unfolded that would end the life of 18-year-old Khiry Taggart. On April 4, 2017, what was initially reported as a vehicle accident around 12:45 a.m. near New Halls Ferry and Green Grass Drive was soon discovered to be a far more violent scene. Responding officers found Taggart, a male freshman at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and a resident of Chicago, inside the crashed vehicle with a gunshot wound.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation into the incident revealed a narrative that began to take shape a mile away from the crash site. Taggart was not alone in the car; a 19-year-old woman was also a passenger, and she too had been shot. A third individual, the driver of the vehicle, was unharmed. Authorities later determined that the shooting occurred prior to the crash. The injured female passenger was transported to a local hospital and was reported to be in stable condition.
Within a week, the St. Louis County Police Department announced an arrest in connection with the fatal shooting. James Williams, a 19-year-old from St. Louis, was taken into custody and charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. According to police statements, Williams was allegedly involved in a drug transaction with individuals in the car when the gunfire erupted. Following the charges, Williams was held on a $500,000 cash-only bond. The case painted a grim picture of a purported drug deal that escalated into deadly violence, cutting short the life of a young university student.
