DeShaun Dupree Holton, a 32-year-old Black/African American male from Detroit, MI, lost his life in the early morning hours of April 11, 2006. An evening that began with friends barhopping ended in a fatal confrontation inside the CCC Club, an after-hours establishment on Detroit's famed 8 Mile Road. Inside the club, Holton, known professionally as the rapper Proof, became involved in a dispute with Keith Bender Jr., a 35-year-old military veteran, reportedly over a game of pool. The disagreement quickly intensified, escalating from a heated argument to a physical altercation.
As the fight spiraled out of control, gunfire erupted, creating chaos within the club. Accounts of the sequence of events vary. The official police version, based on witness statements, indicated that Holton pistol-whipped Bender before shooting him in the head. In response to this, the club's bouncer, Mario Etheridge, who was also Bender's cousin, drew his own weapon and fired at Holton. Proof was struck three times, once in the head and twice in the chest, and was pronounced dead upon arrival at a nearby outpatient facility. Bender was critically injured and succumbed to his wounds a week later. An alternate account from a friend who was with Holton that night claimed that Etheridge fired warning shots into the air first, which caused a panic, and that in the ensuing turmoil, both Holton and Bender were shot.
In the aftermath of the deadly shooting, Mario Etheridge turned himself in to the authorities. He was not charged with the murder of DeShaun Holton, as prosecutors determined he had acted in the lawful defense of another person. Instead, Etheridge faced charges for illegally carrying a concealed weapon and for discharging a firearm inside a building. He was ultimately convicted of these weapons violations. For these crimes, a judge sentenced him to time already served and a fine of $2,000, closing the legal proceedings connected to the violent deaths of both Holton and Bender. The CCC Club was also forced to close for a year as a result of the incident.
