In the early evening of a Saturday in Savannah, Georgia, the life of 26-year-old Valantine Dwight Gant Jr. was cut short in a burst of gunfire. On June 6, 2015, Gant was in his car in the parking lot of a small apartment complex on Edgewater Road when occupants of a black sedan began shooting at his vehicle. He was not alone; his three-year-old son was also in the car and suffered minor cuts from what was believed to be shrapnel.
Responding to reports of the shooting, Southside Precinct Patrol officers were drawn to Gant's vehicle by the sound of a car horn. Inside, they discovered Gant and the injured child. Gant was rushed to Memorial University Medical Center, but he did not survive his injuries. Investigators with the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department found a quantity of drugs and paraphernalia in Gant's car, leading them to believe the shooting occurred during a drug transaction.
In the aftermath of the shooting, law enforcement officials appealed to the public for assistance in identifying the gunman. A tip line was opened, and local clergy agreed to act as intermediaries for anyone wishing to provide information anonymously. The investigation eventually led to the arrests of Dreshaun Martin and Tori Byrd.
Martin and Byrd were subsequently tried and convicted for the malice murder of Valantine Dwight Gant Jr. and the aggravated assault of his young son. Their appeals, which cited claims of trial court errors, insufficient evidence, and ineffective legal counsel, were ultimately denied by the Supreme Court of Georgia, and their convictions were affirmed. Funeral services for Valantine Dwight Gant Jr. were held on Saturday, June 13, 2015, at the First Evergreen Missionary Baptist Church.
