In the late afternoon of February 22, 2016, a single gunshot shattered the neighborhood calm in Northeast Washington, D.C., and ended the life of 21-year-old Deandre A. Sibblies. An African American male, Sibblies was in the 4500 block of Quarles Street, NE, at approximately 5:38 p.m. when he was struck by a bullet in the back. His mother, Janita Morgan, had dropped him off at the nearby Kenilworth-Parkside Recreation Center, a place where he had spent years playing football and later returned to mentor younger children in the sport. A frantic phone call soon alerted her that her son had been shot. By the time she raced back to the scene, all she found were his clothes left behind the crime-scene tape as he was rushed to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Known to his friends and family as 'Dre,' Sibblies was described as a popular and outspoken young man who had never been arrested. He worked a variety of jobs, from construction to stocking supermarket shelves, and was training to become a cross-country truck driver. The day he was killed, he was carrying his first tax refund check. His death was a devastating blow to his family, particularly as it occurred on the 22nd birthday of his sister, Andrea Watkins. The tragedy was compounded by the fact that the family had already lost Deandre's uncle to gun violence over a decade earlier.
In the wake of the shooting, the Metropolitan Police Department sought the public's help for information regarding the homicide, but years later, the case remains unsolved. No arrests have ever been made, and no suspects have been publicly identified. While police have not officially released a motive, Deandre's mother believes a dispute with people he knew may have led to his death, with whispers in the community suggesting jealousy as a possible reason. His family and friends mourned a young man they called a 'normal kid,' whose life was cut short by the persistent violence in the neighborhood he called home.
