In a tragic turn of events on a Sunday afternoon in New Orleans, 38-year-old Lil Ricky Ricardo Antonio Goins, a male, was killed in what appeared to be a random act of violence during a city-wide crime spree. On April 22, 2018, Goins was driving on Elysian Fields Avenue when another vehicle pulled up alongside him. The driver of the other car, later identified by police as 25-year-old Charles Williams, opened fire, striking Goins in the head.
The fatal wound caused Goins to lose control of his vehicle, which then crashed into another car.
The death of Goins was just one part of a violent rampage that terrorized New Orleans that day. Investigators pieced together a timeline that began with Williams leaving his father's home and shooting three people on a nearby porch. He then allegedly committed a carjacking, shooting another person in the face. This was followed by a second armed carjacking in the Upper 9th Ward. It was during this spree that the fatal encounter with Goins occurred. The wave of violence continued when Williams returned to the St. Roch area and fired at police officers who were investigating the initial shootings, grazing one officer in the chest. A police chase ensued, which ended when Williams crashed the stolen vehicle he was driving.
In the aftermath of the city-wide trail of violence, Charles Williams was arrested and faced a total of 39 charges. These included one count of second-degree murder for the death of Lil Ricky Goins, thirteen counts of attempted second-degree murder, five counts of armed robbery with a firearm, and seven counts of aggravated assault with a firearm. Goins' family remembered him as a devoted husband and father of five who had turned his life around. He was a business owner and was described as a loving family man who was cherished by those who knew him. His wife recalled their last conversation before he left the house, never to return, his life cut short in a senseless act.
