On a late summer morning in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the life of 18-year-old Christopher Fields was tragically cut short. On September 11, 2020, at approximately 10 a.m., Fields was gunned down at the Renaissance Gateway Apartments on North Ardenwood Drive. A student at Broadmoor High School, he was just on the cusp of adulthood with his whole life ahead of him.
At the time of his death, he was eagerly awaiting the birth of his daughter, Camyri Kyrielle Fields.
The investigation into the shooting led police to 19-year-old Javonta Broden. With the assistance of the State Police Fugitive Task Force, Broden was taken into custody and subsequently booked into jail on a murder charge in connection with Christopher Fields' death. The arrest brought a swift, if not complete, sense of resolution to the immediate question of who was responsible for the violence that day.
Further details emerged following Broden's arrest, revealing a troubling history with the criminal justice system. It was discovered that at the time of the fatal shooting of Fields, Broden was already out on bond for a separate and violent incident. This prior event was a shootout that had occurred on Mother's Day, just a few months earlier, which resulted in injuries to five people, including a 12-year-old. Broden's freedom at the time he allegedly committed the murder raised concerns within the community about the systems in place for handling violent offenders.
