In the summer of 2021, a dispute that began on the road tragically escalated, cutting short the life of 27-year-old Dante George Southerland in Norfolk, Virginia. The fatal encounter occurred on June 18, 2021, in the parking lot of a Tinee Giant convenience store on East Princess Anne Road, where an argument between Southerland and another man, Breon Redus Davis, turned violent.
Surveillance footage from a nearby building captured the grim sequence of events.
The two men were seen arguing before Davis, then 30 years old, began to repeatedly punch Southerland. The assault quickly intensified as Davis produced a firearm and started shooting at Southerland, chasing him around the parking lot. Southerland, who was also armed, returned fire before falling to the ground. Davis continued to shoot at him. An examination of the scene by forensics experts later determined that Davis fired a total of 18 shots, while Southerland discharged his weapon four times. Southerland sustained nine gunshot wounds and was transported to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
Following the deadly shooting, Breon Davis, who was unharmed, fled the state and went to Georgia. He later turned himself in to authorities. During the investigation, Davis claimed to police that the argument was an extension of a road rage incident that had occurred between the two men earlier that day. He alleged that he only shot Southerland after Southerland attempted to draw his own weapon.
The case proceeded through the legal system, and on May 4, 2023, a Norfolk jury found Breon R. Davis guilty of voluntary manslaughter. In addition to the manslaughter conviction, on July 13 of the same year, Davis pleaded guilty to being a convicted violent felon in possession of a firearm. For the voluntary manslaughter of Dante Southerland, Davis was sentenced to 15 years in prison. He received an additional nine years for the probation violation that resulted from his new conviction, bringing his total sentence to 24 years in prison, to be followed by six months of post-release supervision.
