In the late summer of 2016, a violent act shattered the peace of the small city of Ozark, Arkansas, leading to the untimely death of a young man. Cody Ray Duncan, a 23-year-old male from the nearby town of Altus, was fatally wounded in a shooting that occurred on the evening of August 13, 2016. He was a man who loved music and enjoyed spending time with his family and friends at the lake.
Born on April 9, 1993, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, his life was cut short just as it was unfolding.
On that Saturday night, Ozark police officers were dispatched to an area north of 2nd Street around 9 p.m. following a report of a man with a gunshot wound to the head. Upon arrival, they found Cody Ray Duncan, who was then airlifted to a local hospital in critical condition. Despite medical efforts, Duncan succumbed to his injuries four days later, on August 17, 2016, in a Fayetteville hospital.
The investigation into the shooting quickly led to the identification and arrest of three suspects. Cody Robert Whitten, then 29, was taken into custody and faced serious charges, including first-degree battery, tampering with physical evidence, and possession of a firearm by certain persons. Two other individuals, Curtis Wayne Godwin, 22, and Stephanie Lynn Stacy, 19, were also arrested in connection to the incident. Both were charged with hindering apprehension or prosecution, suggesting they played a role in obstructing the investigation into Duncan's shooting. The swift arrests brought a sense of resolution to the initial phase of the case, though it did little to ease the pain of a family and community mourning the loss of a young life.
