A simmering family dispute in New Roads, Louisiana, tragically boiled over on the evening of September 17, 2021, leaving two men dead and another wounded. The male victim, Howard Glenn Hollins Jr., was 34 years old at the time of his death. The violence erupted at a family gathering on Delta Place Road, culminating in a shooting that shattered the community's sense of peace.
The altercation began as a verbal argument involving several family members. As tensions escalated, Morris J.
Hollins, then 23, produced a firearm and opened fire. The initial target of his rage was his cousin, 25-year-old Gerell Deshawn Hollins, who was intoxicated and had been arguing with relatives. Morris Hollins shot Gerell nine times, killing him at the scene. In the ensuing chaos, as people fled for their lives, Howard Hollins Jr. was struck in the back by a bullet and fatally wounded. A third family member, Gregory Hollins, who was Gerell's father, was also shot in the hip but survived his injuries. Witnesses reported that the family had been arguing for nearly 40 minutes before the gunfire erupted, and law enforcement had been called to the residence prior to the shooting, but Morris Hollins had already left when they arrived.
In the aftermath of the deadly shooting, Morris J. Hollins fled the scene. However, he surrendered to the Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff's Office on September 20, 2021. He was subsequently arrested and booked on two counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of Howard and Gerell Hollins, and one count of attempted second-degree murder for the shooting of Gregory Hollins. The investigation also revealed that a stray bullet had struck a neighbor's home, leading to an additional charge of aggravated criminal damage to property. Furthermore, due to a prior felony conviction in 2019 for illegal use of a weapon, Morris Hollins was also charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The case proceeded to a jury trial in January 2023. After a three-day trial, the jury returned a unanimous verdict, finding Morris J. Hollins guilty on all charges. For the murders of his cousins, Howard and Gerell, he received two sentences of life in prison at hard labor without the possibility of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. For the attempted murder of his uncle, he was sentenced to fifty years of imprisonment at hard labor. The court also imposed a fifteen-year sentence for aggravated criminal damage to property and a twenty-year sentence for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, with all sentences to be served concurrently.
