Do you know who murdered 22 year old Reed Franklin Jr in 2015?
On a late summer afternoon, the sounds of recreation at a community park were shattered by gunfire, leading to the tragic death of a young man. Reed Franklin Jr., a 22-year-old African-American male, was fatally shot on Sunday, August 16, 2015, in Suitland, Maryland. The incident unfolded around 5:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the Bradbury Recreation Center on Ewing Avenue. The park was filled with many adults and children at the time, enjoying the evening.
According to police reports, Franklin, who was from nearby Temple Hills, became involved in an argument with a group of people in the recreation center's parking lot. The verbal altercation escalated tragically when one of the individuals in the group shot Franklin. Witnesses at the scene described hearing rapid and continuous bursts of gunfire. When officers from the Maryland-National Capital Park Police and the Prince George's County Police Department arrived, they discovered Franklin suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, the group of individuals involved fled the area. Investigators stated that the shooting did not appear to be a random act. Authorities interviewed several witnesses and brought some people of interest in for questioning. Despite these initial leads and a reward of up to $25,000 being offered for information leading to an arrest and indictment, no suspects were publicly identified, and no arrests were announced in connection with the murder. The case remains one of the unsolved homicides in Prince George's County, leaving a community to mourn and a family without answers.
