On a Saturday afternoon in October 2017, a dispute over a one-hundred-dollar debt tragically escalated, ending the life of 28-year-old Wyatt Lanell Gaza in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. The events unfolded on the porch of a home in the 1600 block of Jenny Lind Street, where Gaza was with his aunt. A man, later identified as 28-year-old Damien Ashley, arrived by car with a woman and confronted Gaza about money he owed the woman.
Gaza met Ashley on the porch, and the two men engaged in a
heated, face-to-face argument. Gaza’s aunt came out to check on the situation, but her nephew assured her everything was fine and told her to go back inside. Less than a minute later, the sound of gunshots pierced the air. When family members emerged, they found Gaza lying dead in the front doorway from a gunshot wound to the chest. An exchange of gunfire had occurred between the two men, both of whom were convicted felons and not legally allowed to possess firearms.
Damien Ashley, who was also wounded in the shootout with gunshots to his back and calf, fled the scene. The woman who had accompanied him drove him to a local hospital for treatment. Authorities were notified, and Ashley was taken into custody. He was subsequently charged with criminal homicide, illegally possessing a firearm, and carrying a firearm without a license. The woman with Ashley cooperated with police, stating that she witnessed him pull out a gun and shoot Gaza during the confrontation over the debt.
Initially, Ashley was scheduled to stand trial on a homicide charge. However, in July 2019, he accepted a plea deal. Damien Ashley pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and two weapons charges for his role in the death of Wyatt Gaza. Following his plea, a judge sentenced him to serve between seven and a half to twenty years in state prison. The fatal encounter left Gaza’s young daughter without a father.
