In the early evening of a December Sunday in Owensboro, Kentucky, a verbal dispute on Sycamore Street took a fatal turn, forever altering the lives of two families. On December 4, 2016, 36-year-old Jerard A. Fountain, a Black male, was involved in a heated argument that escalated into an exchange of gunfire. Fountain sustained a gunshot wound to the chest and was rushed to Owensboro Health Regional Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The other man involved in the altercation, 24-year-old Preston T. Williams, was also shot and was hospitalized in serious condition with a gunshot wound to the abdomen.
The Owensboro Police Department's investigation into the shooting led to charges against two men. Preston T. Williams was charged with first-degree manslaughter. Another man, Donte M. Washington, was also implicated and faced a charge of murder. Investigators utilized evidence from the scene, witness statements, and surveillance footage to build their cases against the two suspects. The investigation suggested that both Williams and Washington were involved in the fatal incident.
The legal proceedings that followed painted a complex picture of the events that transpired on that December evening. Donte Washington went to trial in March 2019. During the trial, testimonies were heard from various witnesses, including law enforcement officers who collected evidence at the scene and Washington's former girlfriend. Despite the prosecution's efforts, the jury found Donte Washington not guilty of the charges related to Fountain's death.
Preston T. Williams also faced a jury in connection with the shooting. His defense team argued that he acted in self-defense during the altercation with Fountain. After a weeklong trial, the jury acquitted Williams of the murder charge. Following the acquittals of both men charged in connection with his death, the case of who was ultimately responsible for the death of Jerard Fountain was left legally unresolved, leaving a painful and unanswered question for his loved ones.
