On a Monday afternoon in the Holy Cross neighborhood of New Orleans, Darren 'Deedy' Phillip Cheneau, a 51-year-old man, was shot and killed. The incident, which occurred on March 19, 2018, also claimed the life of his girlfriend, Chantelle Johnson. The couple was inside a parked vehicle near the corner of St. Claude Avenue and St. Claude Court when the shooting took place. Inside the car with them was Johnson's one-year-old daughter, who was miraculously unharmed.
It is believed that Cheneau may have shielded the child from the gunfire.
The tragedy was compounded by the identity of the alleged shooter: Cheneau's 16-year-old first cousin, Ammond Wright. Family members reported that Cheneau had a close relationship with the teenager, treating him like a son. Wright even lived with Cheneau just down the street from where the fatal shooting occurred. In the weeks leading up to the incident, family members had noticed Wright behaving strangely, with some describing him as seeming 'possessed.'
Following the shooting, Ammond Wright was arrested by the New Orleans Police Department. The motive for the killings remained unclear to the family, who were left in a state of shock and grief. Cheneau's son, Davonne Lee, expressed his profound sadness and confusion, highlighting the close bond between his father and the young suspect. The family grappled with the devastating loss while also facing the reality that a relative was responsible. Wright was taken into custody and was expected to have a probable cause hearing to determine whether he would be prosecuted as a juvenile or an adult.
