In the early hours of April 14, 2020, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 18-year-old Quainnesha Paul, a female, died from a gunshot wound. The incident occurred at her home on Lake Sherwood Avenue shortly after midnight. Initially, authorities were told that Paul had shot herself. However, the East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office determined that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to her upper back and ruled the manner of death a homicide.
This finding contradicted the initial report of a self-inflicted wound.
Following the autopsy results, police arrested a relative, 22-year-old Keagan Valdry, in connection with the shooting. Valdry was subsequently booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on a charge of negligent homicide. He pleaded not guilty and was released on a $10,000 bond.
The case against Valdry proceeded through the court system for a period of time. After several continuances, the charges against him were ultimately dismissed in October 2022. The state attributed the incident to an 'accident/mitigation.' In August 2023, Valdry filed a motion to have his record expunged, a request to which neither the Baton Rouge Police Department nor the District Attorney's Office objected. In a surprising turn of events, it was reported in October 2023 that Valdry had been enrolled in the BRPD Academy with the intention of becoming a police officer.
