In the early hours of April 25, 2014, the city of Beloit, Wisconsin, was rocked by a homicide that would take over a year to see arrests. Edward Damont Haley, a 36-year-old Black man, was found shot and lying in the roadway in the 2100 block of Newark Road. The Beloit Police Department, along with the Town of Beloit Police and Fire Departments, responded to a "man down" call at approximately 12:15 a.m. Haley was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
The incident was immediately investigated as a homicide, marking one of two that would occur in the city within a 10-hour period.
The investigation into Haley's death was extensive. For over a year, detectives worked to piece together the events of that fatal morning. The breakthrough in the case came in November 2015, when the Beloit Police Department announced the arrests of three men in connection with the murder. The suspects were identified as Ronald Hicks, Angelo Young, and LaQuan Kendall. All three were charged with first-degree intentional homicide. At the time of their arrests for Haley's murder, two of the suspects, Young and Kendall, were already incarcerated for other offenses. Kendall was being held in connection with another murder case. First-degree intentional homicide warrants were issued for all three men, signaling a significant step towards bringing justice for the death of Edward Damont Haley.
The arrests brought a sense of resolution to a case that had remained open for many months. The diligent work of the Beloit Police Department led to the identification and apprehension of the individuals they believed to be responsible for the death of Edward Damont Haley. The charges of first-degree intentional homicide indicated the serious nature of the crime and the authorities' belief that the act was premeditated. The community was left to await the legal proceedings that would follow, hoping for a conclusion that would honor the memory of the victim and hold his alleged assailants accountable for their actions.
