In the early morning hours of a late April day in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a violent encounter cut short the life of 30-year-old Steven Sturlese. On April 29, 2022, Sturlese, a male resident of the city, was fatally shot in an incident that also left another man, Kenny Jules Sturlese, critically injured. The shooting took place in the 1000 block of McCall Street, where responding officers discovered both men suffering from gunshot wounds.
Despite being rushed to a local hospital, Steven Sturlese was pronounced deceased at 5:17 a.m. The second victim was stabilized and then airlifted to a hospital in New Orleans for further treatment.
The investigation into the shooting quickly led to a suspect. Joshua B. Hardin, a 36-year-old from Lake Charles, was taken into custody. Initially, one suspect was reported to be in custody and being questioned by investigators. Hardin was subsequently charged with second-degree murder for the death of Steven Sturlese and attempted second-degree murder for the shooting of Kenny Jules Sturlese. He was booked into the Calcasieu Correctional Center with a bond set at $1,500,000. Reports indicated that the three men had been at a bar called On the Rocks prior to the fatal altercation.
In 2023, the legal proceedings against Joshua B. Hardin came to a resolution. Originally facing a mandatory life sentence for the second-degree murder charge, Hardin entered an Alford plea to the lesser charges of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter. This type of plea allows a defendant to maintain their innocence while acknowledging that the prosecution has enough evidence to likely secure a conviction. Following his plea, a weapons charge against him was dismissed. Hardin was sentenced to 40 years in prison for his role in the death of Steven Sturlese and the wounding of Kenny Jules Sturlese. An appeal to have his sentence reduced was later rejected, with the court noting the significant reduction in criminal penalties he had already received through the plea deal.
