In the late hours of a Saturday night that bled into the early morning of Sunday, March 2, 2014, a gathering among friends in Newport News, Virginia, took a tragic turn. Inside an apartment at the Newport Harbor Apartments on Madison Avenue, a small party was underway. Among those present was 26-year-old Laran Tarel Strawter, a United States Navy serviceman.
At some point during the evening, an argument erupted between Strawter and another man, identified as Shawn House of Suffolk.
The disagreement moved outside, where it escalated with deadly consequences. It is believed that during this confrontation, House shot Strawter. Despite his injuries, Strawter managed to run back into the apartment before collapsing. Police received a call about a possible shooting just before 11 p.m. and arrived to find Strawter suffering from a gunshot wound. He was rushed to a local hospital, but his life could not be saved, and he was pronounced dead shortly before 12:30 a.m.
The day following the fatal shooting, Shawn House turned himself into the authorities at approximately 4:30 p.m. He was subsequently arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Laran Strawter. The investigation, aided by witness statements, pointed to the argument between the two men as the catalyst for the deadly encounter. Strawter, a former resident of Tifton, Georgia, was survived by his wife, children, parents, and siblings. His funeral was held with full military honors.
