On a tragic evening in January 2017, a burst of gunfire in a Metairie neighborhood shattered the night and ended three young lives. Among the victims was 25-year-old Malcolm Wallace, a male resident of Metairie. The violence that erupted in the 1400 block of Laurel Street also claimed the lives of his 16-year-old sister, Monica Bates, and his 24-year-old girlfriend, Daneka Lott of Kenner. When authorities arrived at the scene, they found a car that had crashed into a utility pole, with the three victims inside, all suffering from fatal gunshot wounds.
The investigation into the triple homicide soon focused on a man who was considered a close friend of Malcolm Wallace. Corey Woods, 31, also of Metairie, had reportedly spent the day of the murders with Wallace, watching a football game at Wallace's grandmother's apartment. In a devastating turn of events, this close friend would become the primary suspect in the brutal slayings. Investigators determined that Woods was inside the vehicle with Wallace, Bates, and Lott when he opened fire. Prosecutors later argued that Malcolm Wallace was the intended target of the shooting, and that his girlfriend and teenage sister were tragically killed simply because they were witnesses to the crime.
Within a short time, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office arrested Corey Woods and charged him with three counts of first-degree murder. At the time of his arrest for the murders, Woods was already in custody on unrelated drug charges, including distribution of heroin. The case proceeded through the justice system, and in November of the following year, a jury convicted Woods on three counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of Wallace, Lott, and Bates. The conviction brought a measure of closure to the families of the victims, as the man responsible for their deaths was held accountable.
In January 2019, Corey Woods was sentenced for his crimes. A judge handed down three mandatory life sentences, ensuring that he would spend the remainder of his life in prison for the triple murder. In addition to the life sentences for the killings, Woods also received a 50-year sentence for a separate conviction on a heroin distribution charge. The sentencing marked the final chapter in the legal proceedings following the violent deaths of Malcolm Wallace, his sister, and his girlfriend, leaving a community to mourn their loss.
