On a warm Friday evening, June 21, 2024, the sounds of a family gathering filled the air on Domedion Avenue in Buffalo, New York. Three-year-old Ramone L. Carter, a Black male, was joyfully riding his tricycle outside his home around 9:30 p.m., a scene of childhood innocence that was about to be shattered. In an instant, the cheerful atmosphere was pierced by the sound of gunfire, and young Ramone was struck and fatally wounded.
His 7-year-old sister, who was playing nearby, was also injured, grazed by a bullet. First responders rushed Ramone to a local hospital, but tragically, he was pronounced dead.
The investigation into the senseless shooting quickly revealed that neither Ramone nor his sister were the intended targets of the violence. The gunfire was the result of an altercation between two teenage boys and another individual. Within minutes of the shooting, Buffalo Police apprehended two suspects a few blocks from the scene, their clothing matching descriptions given by eyewitnesses. The suspects were identified as a 14-year-old and a 16-year-old. Police discovered an illegal handgun in the possession of the younger teen at the time of his arrest.
The two teenagers were subsequently indicted on a range of serious charges, including second-degree murder, attempted murder, assault, and criminal possession of a weapon. The case proceeded to trial, where the heartbreaking details of the evening were laid bare. After a four-day trial and approximately five hours of deliberation, a jury returned its verdict in October 2025.
The younger suspect, who was 16 at the time of the verdict, was found guilty of Murder in the Second Degree, Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, and Assault in the Second Degree. The older teen, then 17, was convicted of the lesser charge of Manslaughter in the First Degree, as well as Assault in the Second Degree. Ramone's mother, Shakenya Griffin, expressed her relief at the justice served, though the pain of losing her son, whom she described as a 'lovable person,' remained immense. The tragic death of the boy, affectionately called 'Red,' sparked widespread community grief and renewed calls to end gun violence.
