In the morning hours of Friday, December 8, 2023, the life of 28-year-old Ranshad Jefferson, a male resident of Bogalusa, Louisiana, was tragically cut short. Gunfire erupted in the Poplas Quarters neighborhood, and when Bogalusa Police Department officers and Northshore EMS personnel arrived at the 1100 block of Ann Street around 10:00 a.m., they discovered Jefferson unresponsive.
He had sustained multiple gunshot wounds and, despite immediate medical attention, showed no signs of life and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The subsequent investigation into the fatal shooting quickly led law enforcement to a suspect. Following a brief foot chase through a nearby alleyway, police apprehended 20-year-old Journell Nelson. At the time of his arrest, Nelson was found to be in possession of a handgun. In connection with the death of Ranshad Jefferson, authorities also arrested Gwendalyn Speights. The investigation continued to unfold, piecing together the events that led to the deadly encounter on Ann Street.
Following their arrests, both Journell Nelson and Gwendalyn Speights faced serious charges. Nelson was charged with second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, illegal use of weapons, illegal carrying of weapons, and resisting an officer. Speights was charged with principal to second-degree murder and principal to attempted second-degree murder. The legal process moved forward, and on February 6, 2024, a Washington Parish grand jury indicted both Nelson, then 20, and Speights, then 24, on the charge of first-degree murder in the death of Ranshad Jefferson. Nelson was also indicted for the illegal use of a firearm.
