In the late hours of a Sunday evening in Lafayette, Louisiana, the life of 19-year-old Xavier Batiste was tragically cut short. On June 27, 2021, Batiste was fatally shot outside a Waffle House on North University Avenue. Another young man, 19-year-old Brandon Arnold, was also killed in the incident. When police arrived at the scene around 10:48 p.m., they discovered Arnold deceased in the parking lot. Batiste was found inside a vehicle, having sustained multiple gunshot wounds.
He was rushed to a local hospital but succumbed to his injuries shortly after arrival.
The investigation into the double homicide quickly pointed to a suspect, 23-year-old Dejuan Clay. The day after the shooting, Clay turned himself in to the authorities. During the investigation, it was revealed that Batiste was inside the vehicle driven by Clay at the time of the shooting. The motive for the crime is believed to have been robbery, with investigators suspecting that Arnold, a Waffle House employee, was the intended target.
Following his surrender, Dejuan Clay was arrested and faced a series of charges, including first-degree murder, obstruction of justice, and armed robbery. In February 2024, Clay pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in connection with the death of Brandon Arnold. He was subsequently sentenced to eight years of hard labor. While the plea deal specifically mentioned Arnold, it was part of the legal proceedings that addressed the events of that fatal night which also claimed the life of Xavier Batiste.
