In the spring of 2015, the life of 17-year-old Domingo Santiago Davis Jr. was tragically cut short in a burst of gunfire in Newport News, Virginia. On the evening of April 6th, Davis was attending a birthday party on the 800 block of West 25th Street when violence erupted. Around 10:25 p.m., shots rang out, and when the chaos subsided, Davis and 13-year-old Jada Richardson of Hampton were found dead from gunshot wounds.
The two teenagers were not the only victims of the reckless shooting, as investigators later found bullet holes in a red truck and a white sedan parked along the street.
In the immediate aftermath, Newport News police encountered a challenging and uncooperative crowd at the scene of the crime. Authorities quickly began to suspect that the shooting was not a random act of violence. Citing Davis's criminal history, police believed the homicides were intertwined with gang activity and could potentially be a retaliatory act, sparking fears of further violence in the community. In response to the growing concerns, the police department announced increased curfew enforcement in the southeast section of the city in the days following the shooting.
The investigation into the deaths of Davis and Richardson eventually led to a sweeping federal racketeering case against members of the 36th Street Bang Squad street gang. After a lengthy seven-week trial, a jury in Norfolk federal court found seven members of the gang guilty of racketeering conspiracy, a charge that encompassed three murders and several other shootings. Among those convicted were Martin L. Hunt Jr., then 22, and Xavier S. Greene, then 25, both of Newport News. They were found guilty of murder in aid of racketeering and using a firearm resulting in death for their roles in the double homicide that claimed the lives of Davis and Richardson. The convictions for Hunt and Greene carried mandatory life sentences in federal prison.
While justice was served for some, the legal proceedings also revealed the complexities of the case. Another man, Deshaun Richardson, who was also charged with the murders, was acquitted of that specific charge, although he was convicted of the overarching racketeering conspiracy. A fourth individual that prosecutors identified as a shooter in the incident, Steven Harris, was never brought to trial, as he was shot and killed in a Hampton parking lot just seven months after the deaths of Davis and Richardson.
