On a cold February afternoon in Burlington, Iowa, a dispute that began over missing items escalated into a fatal encounter for Deonte Raynell Carter, a 24-year-old Black / African American man. The events of February 16, 2015, would ultimately lead to Carter's death and a lengthy legal process to bring his killer to justice. The conflict reportedly started with a verbal argument between Carter and another man, Terrance Polk, in the front yard of a residence.
Carter accused Polk of taking some of his belongings, a claim Polk denied. After being told to leave the property, the disagreement continued over social media, culminating in an agreement to meet for a physical fight near South Hill Park.
Carter arrived at the park accompanied by his cousin, Donnell Watson, and a friend. There, they were met by a group that included Polk and Earl Riley Booth-Harris. According to Watson's later testimony, Booth-Harris was armed with a gun. Carter, seemingly undeterred, addressed Booth-Harris, stating, "You going to have to do what you're going to have to do with it." In the moments that followed, Booth-Harris opened fire, shooting Carter multiple times. As chaos erupted and Watson fled for safety, he returned shortly after to find his cousin lying wounded in the street at the corner of Elm and South 7th streets. A friend who was with them promptly called 911. Carter was rushed by ambulance to a local hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. An autopsy later confirmed that he died from multiple gunshot wounds to his upper torso. During the incident, Booth-Harris was also shot in the leg.
The investigation into Carter's homicide was a collaborative effort involving the Burlington Police Department, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Des Moines County Attorney's Office, and the Iowa Attorney General's Office. Investigators received numerous tips from the community, including information from social media, which led them to a black SUV believed to be connected to the shooting. This vehicle was processed for evidence by a crime lab. The critical breakthrough in the case came from the eyewitness testimony of Carter's cousin, Donnell Watson, who identified Earl Riley Booth-Harris as the individual who shot Carter.
Following the investigation, Earl Riley Booth-Harris, then 23, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He was located and taken into custody in Illinois. The legal proceedings that followed culminated in a jury finding Booth-Harris guilty of the murder of Deonte Carter. He was subsequently sentenced to a mandatory term of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Booth-Harris later appealed his conviction, arguing that the photographic lineup used for his identification was impermissibly suggestive. However, the Court of Appeals of Iowa affirmed the district court's decision, and his conviction for first-degree murder was upheld.
