On a summer evening in Boston, 15-year-old Curtis Ashford Jr., a Black male, was fatally shot on Ellington Street in the Dorchester neighborhood on July 27, 2022. He had recently graduated from middle school and was looking forward to starting high school. That evening, he was playing basketball with friends at a nearby park before the shooting occurred.
The incident unfolded at approximately 7:30 p.m.
when a car driven by 25-year-old Dominick Gavin arrived in the area of Ellington Street. His passenger, 18-year-old Zontre Mack, exited the vehicle and opened fire on a group of people, including Curtis. As the crowd scattered, Curtis was struck by the gunfire while trying to get away. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Tragically, Curtis's father had also been killed 16 years prior.
An investigation by the Boston Police Department led to the identification of two suspects. Surveillance video and witness accounts were crucial in piecing together the events of that evening. Investigators located the vehicle driven by Gavin and recovered evidence, including DNA and fingerprints that were matched to Mack. Dominick Gavin was arrested on September 26, 2022, and Zontre Mack was apprehended on October 20, 2022.
Zontre Mack was charged with murder and unlawful possession of a firearm. In October 2024, a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years. Dominick Gavin pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact and was sentenced to three to four years in state prison.
