On the evening of February 21, 2023, a tragic event unfolded on the 2600 block of West Broadway Avenue in north Minneapolis, forever altering the lives of a local family. Twenty-eight-year-old Hispanic female, Alexis Rae Rodriguez, was caught in a hail of gunfire that would ultimately claim her life. Rodriguez, known to her loved ones as "Dud," was a passenger in a vehicle with a 41-year-old man when another vehicle pulled alongside them.
The driver of the second vehicle opened fire, striking both Rodriguez and the man she was with.
Despite being wounded, the male driver managed to transport them to North Memorial Health Hospital. Their arrival in a car riddled with bullet holes signaled the gravity of the situation. Medical personnel worked to save them, but Rodriguez succumbed to multiple gunshot wounds at approximately 8:30 p.m. The man accompanying her sustained significant injuries but survived. The incident marked another grim moment of gun violence in the city.
The investigation into the shooting led authorities to identify two individuals responsible for the attack. Marquis Deonte Gardner, 34, was identified as the shooter. He later alleged that the man with Rodriguez had robbed him. Gardner's accomplice, 39-year-old Anthony Leandre Winston, was also implicated in the crime. Their actions left a community in mourning and a family seeking justice for the untimely death of a young woman.
In April 2025, a measure of justice was served when both men were sentenced for their roles in the fatal shooting. Marquis Deonte Gardner pleaded guilty to second-degree intentional murder and attempted second-degree intentional murder and received a sentence of 330 months in prison. Anthony Leandre Winston pleaded guilty to two counts of aiding an offender and was sentenced to 120 months. The sentencing brought a close to the legal proceedings, but the profound loss of Alexis Rae Rodriguez continues to be felt by her family and friends.
