In the morning hours of September 18, 2018, in Camden, New Jersey, 31-year-old Donte Brown was the victim of a fatal shooting. The incident occurred around 10 a.m. near the intersection of Ferry Avenue and Kossuth Street, directly outside the Ferry Avenue United Methodist Church, where a food distribution event was taking place. Brown was reportedly sitting on a parked bicycle when he was shot.
Bystanders quickly flagged down a Camden County Police Department officer to report the
shooting. Emergency services were dispatched to the scene, and Brown was transported to Cooper University Hospital for treatment. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, he was pronounced dead at 12:52 p.m. that same day. The shooting took place in a neighborhood known for drug activity, causing considerable alarm among local residents and members of the church community.
The investigation into Donte Brown's death led detectives to identify 30-year-old Dezmenn Warren, also a resident of Camden, as a suspect. It was determined that Warren was in the vicinity at the time of the shooting. Authorities have suggested that the motive for the crime was a suspected romantic rivalry, alleging that Warren believed Brown was involved with the mother of his children. According to law enforcement, Warren fired three shots at Brown, with one striking him.
On September 26, 2018, eight days after the shooting, Dezmenn Warren was taken into custody without incident at the Camden County Prosecutor's Office. He was subsequently charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Donte Brown. Following his arrest, Warren was held at the Camden County Correctional Facility to await a pretrial detention hearing. During a court appearance in early October 2018, Warren chose to waive his right to contest his detention and remained jailed pending his murder trial.
