On a quiet Sunday in November 2017, a wave of violence shattered the peace in East Feliciana and East Baton Rouge parishes, leaving four people dead, including Gerald Parker. The chain of events began in a home in Slaughter, Louisiana, where Parker, a Black/African American male, was shot and killed.
The tragic evening of November 26th unfolded when a gunman, later identified as Taurus Hamilton, forced his way into the residence. Inside, he first shot Gerald Parker.
Also in the home were Laquana Whitfield and her boyfriend, Gerald "PJ" Tate. Hamilton, who had a previous relationship and a child with Whitfield, then proceeded to fatally shoot both of them. A witness to the horrific events, who was Parker's wife and Whitfield's mother, managed to escape the carnage by locking herself and her grandson in a bathroom. From her place of hiding, she heard the gunshots that claimed the lives of her loved ones and later saw Hamilton leave the house in his truck.
After the brutal slayings in the Slaughter home, the violence continued. Hamilton then drove to a gas station in Zachary where he got into an argument with 24-year-old Christopher Jerrod Price and fatally shot him. The motive for this final act of violence remains part of the larger, tragic narrative of that day.
In the aftermath of the quadruple homicide, law enforcement launched an intensive investigation. The search for the suspect extended beyond Louisiana's borders, culminating in the apprehension of Taurus Hamilton and his mother, Belinda Hamilton, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Both were arrested in connection with the four murders. Following his arrest, Taurus Hamilton was charged with the killings. In February 2018, he pleaded not guilty to the three murders that occurred in East Feliciana Parish. The legal proceedings against both Taurus and Belinda Hamilton have been ongoing, marking a long road to justice for the families of Gerald Parker, Laquana Whitfield, Gerald Tate, and Christopher Price.
