An 18-year-old African American male, Ja’Zaylon Lamarr Levy, tragically lost his life on the evening of July 14, 2022, in Abbeville, Louisiana. The incident occurred at the Stone Bridge Apartment Complex located at 2790 Rodeo Drive, where law enforcement responded to 911 calls reporting gunfire. Upon their arrival, they discovered Levy with a gunshot wound to his hip. He was quickly transported to Abbeville General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Investigations later revealed that
Ja’Zaylon was an innocent bystander and not the intended target of the shooting.
The investigation into the shooting led to the arrests of two men from Abbeville: 25-year-old Donald Briggs III and 19-year-old Stefan Briggs. Initially, they were arrested for first-degree murder. The case against the two men proceeded to trial, where prosecutors presented crucial evidence against them. This included video footage that showed the Briggs brothers leaving a local Walmart shortly before the shooting and then departing from the scene of the crime immediately after. Witnesses also testified, identifying the two men in the video and the silver Mercedes Benz they were in at the apartment complex.
Following the trial, a jury convicted both Donald Briggs III and Stefan Briggs of second-degree murder in connection with Ja’Zaylon Lamarr Levy's death. The successful prosecution was the result of a collaborative effort between the District Attorney's office and law enforcement agencies. The jury's guilty verdicts were reached after a careful and thorough examination of all the evidence presented during the trial.
