In a tragic turn of events, the life of a 31-year-old Black/African American woman, Latrecia Collins, was cut short in Atlanta, Georgia. On the morning of August 11, 2023, her body was discovered in the driveway of a southwest Atlanta home on Cascade Road by a father walking his daughter to school. The location was not far from Tuskegee Airmen Global Academy, an elementary school.
An investigation swiftly determined that Collins had died from a gunshot wound to the head.
Nearly a month of police work, utilizing a combination of phone records, security camera footage, and a crucial tip from Crime Stoppers, led to a significant breakthrough in the case. Investigators were able to identify 26-year-old Demetric Lawson of Atlanta as the primary suspect. Evidence showed that Lawson was with Collins at the time of her death and that his phone was traveling with hers. Following the discovery of Collins's body, her car was reported stolen. A few hours later, the vehicle was located with three men inside who provided critical information that helped solidify Lawson as the suspect.
Demetric Lawson was arrested and booked into the Fulton County Jail in early September 2023. He faces multiple charges, including murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The three men found in Collins's car later identified Lawson in a lineup. They informed police that Lawson had a black handgun when he gave them the car and that they had witnessed him removing a woman's clothing from the vehicle. Lawson has a prior criminal history that includes charges for rape, aggravated assault, robbery, and battery, and he had been released from jail in April 2023 after a nearly three-year-long incarceration. He remains in the Fulton County Jail without bond. Latrecia Collins was laid to rest at Sunrise Memorial Gardens in her hometown of Douglasville on August 26, 2023.
