In a tragic and senseless act of violence, a dispute over a simple cell phone charger led to the death of 34-year-old Edward Lattin in Shreveport, Louisiana. On December 18, 2020, Lattin, a male, was at his home on DeSoto Street with his girlfriend and her family when he went next door to his neighbor's residence to retrieve a phone charger. An argument erupted between Lattin and his neighbor's girlfriend over the accessory.
After returning to his own home and explaining the situation to
his girlfriend, the argument reignited outside between Lattin and the female neighbor. The verbal altercation quickly escalated when the neighbor's boyfriend, Joshua Parks, then 26, came out of the residence. As the two men were about to engage in a physical fight, Parks produced a. 380 caliber handgun and opened fire as Lattin turned to run. Lattin fell to the ground after being struck.
In a horrifying turn of events, Parks then walked over to the fallen Lattin and shot him multiple more times, including in the back of the head. In total, Lattin was shot eight times. He was rushed to Ochsner LSU Health hospital but was pronounced dead that morning. Parks fled the scene after the shooting but later surrendered to authorities at the Caddo Correctional Center. Forensic evidence, including Lattin's DNA on Parks' bloody shoes, tied him to the crime.
Following the investigation, Joshua Parks was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. His trial concluded in August 2024, when a Caddo Parish jury took only half an hour to find him guilty as charged. In September 2024, Joshua Parks, then 30, was sentenced to a mandatory life sentence in prison without the possibility of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence for the murder of Edward Lattin.
