In the early hours of Tuesday, March 10, 2015, the life of 26-year-old Caucasian male Carl Nichols was tragically cut short in his Kenosha, Wisconsin, apartment. Just before 3 a.m., police received a 911 call reporting a medical emergency at a duplex located near 47th Street and Sheridan Road. Upon arrival, officers were met by a 29-year-old man, later identified as Roland Garza, a friend of Nichols.
Garza directed the officers to the upper unit of the residence where they found a grim scene.
Inside the apartment, Carl Nichols was discovered on the living room floor, slumped against a couch with a single gunshot wound to his chest. A handgun was found in his right hand. Paramedics worked for approximately 30 minutes in an attempt to save his life, but he was pronounced dead at 3:37 a.m. The man who had greeted the police, Roland Garza, was present at the scene and had been the one to make the initial emergency call.
The investigation into Nichols' death quickly focused on Roland Garza as the primary suspect. His account of the events that transpired that morning shifted multiple times under questioning. Initially, Garza claimed that Nichols had shot himself, telling officers that Nichols was depressed over losing custody of his child and had discussed suicide. However, his story later changed, with Garza at one point stating that the gun had gone off accidentally and that he had placed the weapon in Nichols' lap to make it look like a suicide.
Adding a chilling layer to the investigation, a witness came forward stating they were on the phone with Nichols at the very moment he was shot. The witness told authorities that during their conversation, Nichols suddenly said, "Dude, he just shot me." The caller, caught off guard, asked Nichols to repeat himself, to which Nichols replied, "Yeah, he just shot me," just before the call ended. This crucial piece of information contradicted Garza's claims of suicide or an accidental shooting. Further investigation revealed that Nichols had been involved with Garza's ex-girlfriend and had expressed concern that Garza was stalking him. Roland Garza was taken into custody, and authorities sought charges of first-degree reckless homicide against him in connection with the death of his friend.
