On a summer evening in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the life of 51-year-old Shirley Gates was tragically cut short in an act of brutal revenge. On June 17, 1995, a man named Darnell Collins, who had been recently paroled, arrived at Shirley's home on North Virginia Avenue. He was not looking for her, but for her 30-year-old daughter, April, with whom he had been in a tumultuous relationship. April had recently reported Collins for a parole violation, which had led to a warrant for his arrest. Enraged by this, Collins sought her out, but she was not at the residence.
Instead of leaving, Collins forced his way into the home where he found Shirley. He proceeded to tie her up and then shot her twice, once above and once below the ear, using a. 22-caliber revolver that may have belonged to Shirley herself. After taking her life, Collins took her vehicle and drove a short distance to a birthday party where he knew April would be.
He entered the party and, in front of numerous witnesses, shot April in the head and then twice in the stomach, reportedly yelling, 'Why'd you tell?' before she succumbed to her injuries.
The deaths of Shirley and April Gates were the beginning of a multi-day, multi-state crime spree for Darnell Collins. He went on to kill several other people in New Jersey and New York before his reign of terror came to an end. A few days after the initial murders, Collins was killed in a shootout with police in Nutley, New Jersey. The suspect in the murder of Shirley Gates was never formally arrested and tried because he was killed during his capture. His death brought an end to the violent rampage that began with the senseless killing of a mother in her own home.
