In the late summer of 2011, the life of a young American airman was cut short in Hampton, Virginia. Richard Glenn Redick Jr., a 22-year-old male, was fatally shot on August 31, 2011. A Senior Airman in the United States Air Force, Redick was a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and was stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.
He was in Hampton visiting his wife and son at the time of his death.
The tragic events unfolded in the early morning hours at the Langley Square Apartments on Doolittle Road. An argument broke out between Redick and another man, 23-year-old Marcus Devall Wingate of Hampton. The two men moved their dispute outside into a courtyard, where the confrontation escalated dramatically. It was there that Wingate produced a firearm and shot Redick in the upper torso at approximately 4:30 a.m. Richard Glenn Redick Jr. was pronounced dead at the scene.
Following the shooting, an investigation was launched to find the person responsible for Redick's death. A tip to the Crime Line eventually led police to the whereabouts of Marcus Devall Wingate. In October 2011, he was arrested near the intersection of Queen Street and Settlers Landing Road. Wingate was subsequently charged with murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Ultimately, Marcus Wingate pleaded guilty to manslaughter and a firearms charge as part of a plea agreement. The charge for the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony was nolle prossed, meaning the charge was dropped but could be brought back if new evidence surfaced. For his role in the death of Richard Redick, Wingate was sentenced to eight years in prison. This sentence included a ten-year term for manslaughter with two years suspended, and a fully suspended five-year sentence for the possession of a firearm charge.
