In a heartbreaking turn of events just two days before Thanksgiving in 2016, two-year-old Ramiya Tinkerbell Reed was killed in a drive-by shooting in Little Rock, Arkansas. On November 22nd, the young female child was sitting on her mother's lap in a vehicle on South Harrison Street when the car was targeted by gunfire. Ramiya was the only person struck and her life was tragically cut short.
The senseless act of violence sent shockwaves through the community and left her family devastated, desperately seeking answers and justice for the loss of their 'happy baby' who always had a smile on her face.
The investigation into Ramiya's death led the Little Rock Police Department to two suspects. In May of 2017, authorities arrested 17-year-old Larry Jackson and 21-year-old Deshaun Rushing in connection with the fatal shooting. Both were initially charged with capital murder and six counts of unlawful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle. It was determined that Ramiya was not the intended target of the shooting. The arrests brought a sense of relief to Ramiya's mother and family, who had been praying for a breakthrough in the case.
In April 2018, Deshaun Rushing, then 22, accepted a plea deal and pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison and will be eligible for parole in 21 years. A few months later, in September 2018, Larry Jackson, who was the driver during the incident, also entered a plea agreement. In exchange for his testimony, the capital murder charge against him was dropped, and he pleaded guilty to the unlawful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle. Jackson received a 20-year prison sentence for his role in the death of the young girl.
