On a cold December day in 2021, the life of a young woman, 20-year-old Alicia Underwood, a Black / African American female, was tragically cut short in Hartford, Connecticut. On December 13th, police were called to a residence on Fenwick Street, where they made a grim discovery. Inside the first-floor of the two-family home, Alicia and a 19-year-old man, Deandre Faison, were found, both having sustained fatal gunshot wounds.
The initial investigation into the double fatality quickly
began to paint a sorrowful picture of the relationship between the two. Investigators learned that Alicia and Deandre had been in a dating relationship. The scene within the apartment, coupled with evidence gathered by the Hartford Police Department's Major Crimes Division, led them to believe the incident was a targeted act with no lingering threat to the public. Multiple weapons were recovered from the residence, awaiting further analysis from the state crime lab.
The heartbreaking truth of what transpired was confirmed by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Alicia Underwood's death was officially ruled a homicide, the cause being a gunshot wound to her head. Deandre Faison's death was determined to be a suicide, caused by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The investigation concluded that the tragic event was a murder-suicide. The incident marked the city's 34th and 35th homicides of a year that had seen a rise in such violent crimes.
