In the late morning of May 26, 2022, a promising young musician's life was cut short in the Southeast section of Washington, D.C. Justin Johnson, a 16-year-old male known by his rap moniker 23 Rackz, was in the 2200 block of Savannah Terrace filming a music video. Shortly after posting his location on Instagram, gunfire erupted at approximately 11:22 a.m. When police arrived, they discovered shell casings littering the scene and found Johnson, who had been shot.
He was found on a first-floor landing of an apartment building, having run inside after being wounded. He had a pistol in his waistband and a significant amount of cash in his pocket.
The death of the up-and-coming Maryland-based artist, who had released his album 'Rookie of the Year' in 2021, sent shockwaves through his community. His family described him as an honor roll student who was both book smart and street smart, a regular teenager at home who was known as Justin, not 23 Rackz. His father, Michael Johnson, lamented the pull of the streets on his son, stating he had previously been arrested for gun possession. Despite his family's and manager's efforts to steer him toward his burgeoning music career, including plans to relocate him to Georgia, he remained in the environment that would ultimately claim his life.
The investigation into the shooting led to the arrest of 18-year-old Derrico Johnson of Southeast Washington, D.C. He was charged with first-degree murder while armed. There was no indication that the suspect and the victim were related. Later, it was revealed that the shooting was part of a series of violent acts committed by a crew known as 'Get Back Gang' or 'the Z.'
In a significant development, Derrico Johnson, along with Ronald Henderson, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for the killing of Justin Johnson. These pleas were part of a larger agreement that also saw them and two other individuals, Daveon Robinson and Demarco Robinson, plead guilty in connection with three different daytime shootings in Southeast D.C. Another man, Dionzai Parker, was also charged in connection with Justin Johnson's death. The guilty pleas brought a measure of legal closure to the violent episode that ended the life of a young artist on the rise.
