In the quiet community of Merrydale, Louisiana, a simmering feud between two families erupted into a tragic act of violence that claimed the life of 40-year-old Shelita Vallery. On the night of September 27, 2024, Vallery, known affectionately as 'Bee,' was at her mother's home on Grayson Avenue when a confrontation turned deadly, leaving two other men dead and a family shattered by senseless gun violence.
The incident was the culmination of an ongoing dispute between the Vallery family
and 19-year-old Dominik Franklin, who lived in the same apartment complex. That Friday evening, Franklin, accompanied by his 19-year-old acquaintance Tyrone Eackles, went to the Vallery residence. An argument escalated into a physical altercation, and then shots were fired. In the chaos that ensued, Shelita Vallery, her boyfriend David Celestine, 62, and her relative Paul Lewis, 63, were all shot. Vallery and Celestine were pronounced dead at the scene, while Lewis was rushed to a hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. Family members recall with anguish that Vallery, a beloved pillar of her community, died while trying to protect her nephew during the altercation.
In the aftermath of the triple homicide, both Dominik Franklin and Tyrone Eackles were arrested. The two suspects were also injured during the incident, reportedly when one of the victims returned fire. Following their release from the hospital, they were to be booked into Parish Prison. Franklin was charged with three counts of first-degree murder, though some reports later cited the charges as second-degree homicide. Eackles faced charges of three counts as a principal to first-degree murder and illegal use of a firearm, with later reports mentioning charges of manslaughter. The deep-seated animosity between the two families had tragically and irrevocably altered the lives of everyone involved.
