In the late afternoon of Sunday, October 23, 2016, in Franklin, Louisiana, a tragic event unfolded that would cut short the life of 16-year-old male, Braylen Foulcard. A junior at West St. Mary High School, Foulcard, known to many as 'Bray,' had a passion for sports, cars, and horses. On that day, he had made arrangements to meet someone to sell a cell phone, a seemingly routine transaction that would have devastating consequences.
At approximately 3:50 p.m., the Franklin Police
Department received a report of shots fired in the vicinity of Augustine Maze Street. When officers arrived at the 500 block of the street, they discovered Foulcard inside his vehicle. He had been shot and was deceased at the scene. The investigation into his death would reveal a story of a planned meeting that turned fatal.
The investigation led authorities to several individuals. De'ondric Clarks, who was 15 years old at the time of the incident, was identified as the person Foulcard had arranged to meet. Although a minor, Clarks was tried as an adult for his role in the crime. In August 2019, a St. Mary Parish jury found him guilty of second-degree murder. Subsequently, in February 2020, at the age of 19, Clarks was sentenced to life in prison at hard labor without the benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.
The case also involved others who were believed to be connected to the crime. In May 2019, a grand jury indicted 19-year-old Lunden Toussaint on the charge of principal to second-degree murder in Foulcard's death. Another individual, Raquel Matthews, then 26, was arrested in December 2018. She faced a charge of accessory after the fact to first-degree murder for allegedly disposing of evidence related to the homicide.
