In a quiet Douglasville, Georgia neighborhood, the afternoon of February 7, 2015, was shattered by a brutal act of violence that claimed the life of 33-year-old Joseph Terry Brown. A dispute over finances between Cedric Prather and his ex-wife, Latoya Andrews, escalated into a horrific murder-suicide that left five people dead, including Brown, and critically injured two children.
That Saturday, Prather arrived at the home Andrews and Brown shared. He was armed with a. 45 caliber handgun and a mind set on destruction. Inside the house, he opened fire, fatally shooting Andrews and Brown. The violence spilled out into the street where neighbors reported hearing gunshots and the screams of children. Prather also shot and killed two of his own children with Andrews, 9-year-old Jeremiah and 7-year-old London.
Two other children were caught in the rampage. Brown's 7-year-old daughter, Jada, and Andrews' 15-year-old daughter, Demesha Owens, were both shot and critically wounded. In the aftermath of the carnage, with his victims lying dead and wounded, Cedric Prather turned the gun on himself, ending his own life in the street.
The investigation that followed painted a grim picture of a domestic dispute that had spiraled out of control. Friends of Prather told police he had been upset and angry over tax and child support issues with his ex-wife. There had been no prior reports of domestic violence that would have signaled such a tragic outcome. The community was left in shock and mourning, grappling with the loss of multiple lives in a single, senseless act. A memorial service for Joseph Terry Brown was held on February 21, 2015, as his loved ones and the community grieved his untimely death.
