In a tragic turn of events on a Sunday afternoon, January 20, 2019, the life of 17-year-old Chandler Erskine, a White male, was cut short. The incident that led to his untimely death unfolded in Oak Grove, Louisiana, a place he called home. Chandler, an eleventh-grade student at Oak Grove High School, was known for his kind and polite nature. He was a young man who cherished his family, friends, and had a deep love for life.
The day of the incident, Chandler had asked a 16-year-old
friend, Mason Bankston, to accompany him to a local Sonic Drive-In. Along the way, Chandler intended to meet with Westley Freeman to collect twenty dollars that he was owed. Freeman, however, was not alone. He was with two other individuals, KeJominek Woodruff and James Turner, in a Kia Soul. Earlier in the day, Turner had acquired two handguns. When Bankston's pickup truck and the Kia Soul met, the encounter escalated into a violent confrontation.
The meeting took a fatal turn at the Oak Grove Rodeo grounds in West Carroll Parish. A shooting occurred, leaving Chandler with a fatal gunshot wound and his friend, Mason Bankston, seriously injured. When law enforcement arrived at the scene on Arena Road, they found Chandler deceased. Bankston, still breathing despite his grave injuries, was airlifted to a hospital for medical attention. Investigators at the scene discovered evidence including tire tracks and a bloody shoe, which aided in their investigation. Surveillance footage from a gas station, captured about thirty minutes before the shooting, showed the Kia Soul and Woodruff, which ultimately led to the identification and arrest of the suspects.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the legal process began for those involved. Westly X. Freeman was charged with the first-degree murder of Chandler Erskine and the attempted first-degree murder of Mason Bankston. Following a trial, a jury found Freeman guilty on both counts. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence for the murder conviction. For the attempted murder of Mason Bankston, Freeman received a consecutive sentence of 50 years. The jury, however, acquitted him of two counts of armed robbery. Another individual, James Turner, informed investigators that he and Freeman had taken an AR-style. 22 caliber rifle and two cell phones from Bankston's truck, and the rifle was later recovered by state police.
