Do you know who killed 28 year old Chauntee Lamont Johnson? In the warm evening of July 22, 2005, a life was tragically cut short in a senseless act of violence. Chauntee Lamont Johnson, a 28-year-old African-American male, was in the parking lot of the Suns Market located at 8707 SE Division Street in Portland, Oregon. The time was 7:52 p.m., and the day was winding down, but for Chauntee, his final moments were approaching in the form of a conversation with two unknown men.
Witnesses at the scene observed Chauntee engaged in a discussion with
two other African-American males who were seated in a vehicle. The nature of their conversation is unknown, but it ended in a hail of gunfire that shattered the evening calm. According to those who saw the horrific event unfold, Chauntee began to back away from the car with his hands raised in a non-threatening gesture. It was at this moment that the passenger in the vehicle opened fire, striking Chauntee and inflicting a fatal wound. He was found lying in the parking lot by officers who responded to the reports of a shooting.
The suspects fled the scene immediately after the shooting, driving their vehicle south on SE 87th from Division Street. Eyewitnesses described the car as a blue Ford Escort LX, likely from the early 1990s. The two men inside the vehicle have never been publicly identified, and no arrests have been made in the years following the murder. The case of Chauntee Lamont Johnson's death remains an unsolved homicide, a cold case that still awaits a resolution. The Portland Police Bureau continues to seek information from the public, hoping that someone will come forward with the key piece of evidence that will bring justice for Chauntee and his family.
