In the quiet town of Crowley, Louisiana, the life of 22-year-old Taylor Beverly was tragically cut short on the evening of October 12, 2014. Beverly was found shot in the 600 block of West Seventh Street, a violent end to a young life that would soon become part of a larger, more complex criminal investigation that troubled the community.
The initial investigation into Beverly's death led authorities to a series of other recent shootings that had plagued the area. As detectives began to unravel the threads of violence, a primary suspect in Beverly's murder emerged: 18-year-old D'Avondre Marquest Williams. At the time of the investigation, Williams had been residing in the nearby Welsh area, though he was originally from Beaufort, South Carolina. His arrest was a significant breakthrough for the Crowley Police Department, which had been diligently working to bring a halt to the escalating gun violence.
Williams was subsequently charged with one count of second-degree murder in connection with the death of Taylor Beverly. However, the charges against him did not end there. The broader investigation linked him to another shooting incident that had occurred on East 15th Street. For his alleged involvement in that crime, Williams faced additional charges of home invasion and two counts of attempted first-degree murder.
The investigation into the East 15th Street shooting also led to the arrests of two other men: 22-year-old Aaronton Williams of Jennings and 34-year-old Damien Deshone Guidry of Welsh. Authorities believed that D'Avondre Williams and Damien Guidry had forcefully entered a residence and fired multiple shots at the occupants, while Aaronton Williams was accused of aiding them in the commission of the violent act. Aaronton Williams was charged with principal to home invasion and principal to attempted first-degree murder. While their alleged crimes were separate from the murder of Taylor Beverly, their connection to D'Avondre Marquest Williams painted a grim picture of a network of violence impacting the region. The outcome of the charges against D'Avondre Marquest Williams, Aaronton Williams, and Damien Deshone Guidry remains publicly undisclosed.
