In the early hours of a Sunday morning in the Skyway neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, a gathering at a VFW hall took a tragic turn, ending the life of 35-year-old Charles Ray Justice, a Black male. On April 29, 2018, a disturbance that erupted into a shootout in the parking lot of the venue on Renton Avenue would leave a lasting scar on the community.
Justice was caught in the hail of bullets and sustained multiple gunshot wounds.
The King County Medical Examiner later confirmed that the gunshot wounds were the cause of his death. Another man, 24-year-old Deondre Cabine, also lost his life in the shooting. A third individual was wounded by the gunfire, and the chaos of the event led to further injuries, including those from a related car crash and panic attacks experienced by others present at the scene.
The King County Sheriff's Office launched an investigation into the deadly shootout, working to piece together the events that led to the violence and to identify the individuals responsible for the deaths of Justice and Cabine. Despite their efforts, no arrests have been publicly announced in connection with the homicides. The case remains an open investigation, leaving the families of the victims and the community awaiting answers and the closure that justice might bring. The incident served as a somber call for increased safety measures and support within the community to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.
