Ronald Celestine

Ronald Celestine, a 34-year-old Black man, was shot and killed in Stockton, California, on the afternoon of May 1, 2019. The shooting occurred in the area of Holiday Drive and East March Lane. His death was the city's 14th homicide of the year.

Three days later, on the evening of Saturday, May 4, family and friends gathered for a candlelight vigil at a makeshift memorial for Celestine in the parking lot where he had been killed. Just before 7:45 p.m., gunfire erupted at the vigil. When police arrived, they found five people with gunshot wounds. One of the victims, Celestine’s 34-year-old cousin, Benny Lott III, died from his injuries at a local hospital. The other four victims—a 31-year-old woman, a 39-year-old man, a 29-year-old woman, and a 49-year-old man—were also hospitalized. One man was listed in critical condition, while the others were stable.

Stockton police quickly announced that they believed the two deadly shootings were connected and had a “gang component.” This prompted a multi-jurisdictional investigation into the Everybody Killa (EBK) criminal street gang, led by the Stockton Police Department with assistance from the California Department of Justice and the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office. Investigators looked into a wide range of the gang's alleged criminal activities, which included homicide, illegal weapons trafficking, and robberies.

The investigation culminated in a series of arrests on June 20, 2019. As part of the gang sweep, two people were arrested in connection with Ronald Celestine’s murder. Brian Norman, 20, was arrested in Las Vegas by the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force and charged with homicide with gang enhancements. Raemaonie Gaines, also 20, was arrested and charged with accessory to murder with gang enhancements. Seven other individuals associated with the gang were also arrested that day on various charges.

As of June 2019, two suspects had been arrested and charged in the murder of Ronald Celestine. Announcing the arrests, San Joaquin County District Attorney Verber Salazar said, “We are sending a clear message to the drivers of violence.” Authorities expressed hope that the arrests would encourage people to come forward with more information to help solve other cases. The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with information about either shooting is asked to call the Stockton Police Department at (209) 937-8377, the Investigations Unit at (209) 937-8323, or Crime Stoppers at (209) 946-0600.