In the early morning hours of a Thursday in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, violence shattered the quiet of a neighborhood on West 17th Street. Responding to a call about a possible shooting at 12:57 a.m. on August 13, 2020, police officers arrived to a grim scene. On the front porch of a residence, they discovered 39-year-old Christopher Gates, who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Nearby, in front of the same home near the sidewalk, lay another male
victim who had also been shot multiple times. This was 18-year-old Charles Washington Jr. He was rushed to Jefferson Regional Medical Center for emergency treatment, but tragically, he succumbed to his injuries and died while in surgery. The incident marked the city's 16th and 17th homicides of the year.
In the immediate aftermath of the double homicide, the Pine Bluff Police Department began its investigation. However, details about what led to the deadly shooting were scarce. Authorities reported that the motive for the shooting was unknown, and they had not identified any suspects. The police department appealed to the public for assistance, offering a reward for any information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the deaths of Charles Washington Jr. and Christopher Gates. Despite the ongoing investigation, no information regarding any arrests or the identification of any suspects has been made publicly available in the years following the incident.
