Isis Williams, a 24-year-old Black female, was killed on December 14, 2018, inside a home on Woodstock Street near Chelten Avenue in East Germantown, Philadelphia. In the terrifying moments before her death, she called her mother, who was across the country, screaming and crying that her boyfriend, Tyrese Lynch, was at her door with a gun and saying he was going to kill her.
Their newborn baby girl, only five days old, was in a crib nearby as the confrontation unfolded.
Williams tried to get away from Lynch by locking herself in the bathroom. Prosecutors said Lynch forced his way into the house and made his way to where she was hiding. Her mother, still on the phone, heard the chaos and recognized Lynch’s yelling voice. Lynch later admitted that he got into the bathroom and shot Williams at close range, striking her in the head, neck, torso, and hand. The shooting happened within feet of their infant daughter.
Williams’ mother stayed on the line through the horror, hearing the gunfire until the phone went dead. She then called police and gave them Lynch’s information. Lynch was arrested shortly afterward. Earlier reporting in the case identified him as Williams’ boyfriend and the father of the baby, and authorities said the child was not physically harmed despite being so close to the violence.
The case later moved through court, where Williams’ family had to listen to the details of her killing. In October 2021, Lynch pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, endangering the welfare of a child, and a gun charge. His guilty plea confirmed that he shot and killed Williams while their newborn was only feet away.
The killing was also reported in the context of domestic violence. Williams had previously reported that Lynch assaulted her, but those charges were dropped after she recanted. By the time Lynch stood in court and admitted what he had done, the case had become not only the story of a young mother killed days after childbirth, but also the story of warning signs, fear, and violence that ended with her family grieving in a courtroom while her children were left without their mother.
