In the fading daylight of a late March evening in Bessemer, Alabama, the life of 24-year-old Cadarrius Lamartez Johnson was cut short by gunfire. On Tuesday, March 28, 2017, Johnson was shot and killed, leaving behind a community to grapple with the violent loss. The incident unfolded around 7 p.m. in the 400 block of 17th Street North, a residential area that became the scene of a homicide investigation.
Responding to calls of a person shot, Bessemer police officers arrived to find
Johnson suffering from a gunshot wound. He was quickly transported to UAB Hospital in Birmingham, but his injuries proved to be fatal. In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, investigators began piecing together the events that led to Johnson's death. Their work quickly pointed them toward a person of interest, and within a day, a suspect was in custody.
The investigation led to the arrest of Martarees Johnson, who was 21 years old at the time. Authorities charged him with murder in connection with the shooting death of Cadarrius Johnson. While the exact motive for the shooting was not publicly detailed, the swift identification and arrest of a suspect brought a small measure of resolution to a suddenly grieving family and community. The case then moved to the legal system, where the evidence against Martarees Johnson would be presented and his fate determined.
