In the spring of 2017, the life of a charismatic 28-year-old man, Earl English, was tragically cut short in his Decatur, Georgia, home. A Black / African American male, English was discovered on Tuesday, May 16, 2017, after concerned friends and family were unable to reach him. His failure to show up for his job at a Midtown Atlanta leasing agency, a place where he was known for his reliability, was the first sign that something was terribly wrong.
When his mother, with whom he shared a close bond, found her frequent calls going unanswered and eventually straight to voicemail, a sense of dread began to set in.
Friends and co-workers went to his rented house on Northstrand Drive to check on him. They found his two cars, a 2011 Dodge Charger and a 2015 Chevrolet Camaro, parked in the driveway, which only deepened the mystery of his disappearance. Unable to get inside the locked home, they contacted the DeKalb County police. Officers gained entry and made a grim discovery; English was found deceased inside, the victim of a gunshot wound with a plastic bag placed over his head. The scene inside the house suggested a disturbance, with kitchen cupboards left open and belongings scattered across several rooms, yet the television was still on.
The investigation into Earl English's death left authorities with few immediate answers. While his family believed robbery was the motive, police did not publicly confirm a reason for the killing. The state of the home suggested a search for something, but with his vehicles untouched, the objective of his killer or killers remained unclear. Friends described English as the 'life of the party,' a man who was loved by those who knew him and not one to have enemies, making the violent nature of his death all the more shocking to his community. He was active in his church and the gay pride community, having moved to the Atlanta area from Louisiana for a fresh start after the passing of his grandmother.
Months after the discovery of his body, the case grew cold. Law enforcement officials reported having 'no leads' in the investigation, and no suspects were publicly identified or arrested in connection with the homicide. The last person he was reportedly seen with was a man named 'Antwaun' at a gym in Midtown the day before his body was found. His family, devastated by their loss, made public pleas for anyone with information to come forward, hoping for justice for a life taken too soon. The case of who killed Earl English remains an unsolved tragedy, leaving a void in the lives of those who knew and loved him.
