The life of Brian M. Wright Jr., a 23-year-old Black man, was cut short by gunfire in the early morning hours of June 21, 2024, in Topeka, Kansas. Police were called to the 3100 block of S.W. Westover Road just after 2:15 a.m., where they discovered two people suffering from gunshot wounds. Wright and a woman were both transported to a local hospital with what were described as life-threatening injuries. Wright died at the hospital.
The woman survived, but her name and age were not publicly released by authorities.
The Topeka Police Department launched a homicide investigation, marking the city's seventh of the year. One week after the shooting, on June 28, authorities announced they had made an arrest in the case. Dasanee D. Curry Jr., an 18-year-old from Topeka, was taken into custody and booked into the Shawnee County Jail. Jail records showed he was being held on suspicion of several crimes, including intentional and premeditated first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and criminal discharge of a weapon at an occupied dwelling.
As the investigation continued, a second person was charged in connection with the killing. Daequan Rayton was transferred to the custody of Shawnee County authorities and booked on charges related to the shooting death of Brian Wright.
The case against the individuals charged in Wright's death was proceeding through the legal system as of June 2024.
