Paris Williams

An argument in a New Orleans home in the early hours of March 3, 2015, ended with the murders of a young mother and her eight-year-old daughter, Paris Williams. The Black girl had only recently moved back to the city from Texas and was excited to start at a new school that very morning. Instead, her life was cut short when she was shot in the head as she slept in her bed.

The tragedy unfolded shortly before 1 a.m. in the Little Woods neighborhood of eastern New Orleans. Inside a home on the 14000 block of Duane Road, Paris's mother, 25-year-old Walesha Williams, was arguing with her boyfriend. Also in the home was a 39-year-old female family friend. The argument escalated horrifically when the boyfriend produced a gun and shot Walesha multiple times, killing her at the scene. He then went into Paris's bedroom and shot the sleeping child.

The gunman also shot the family friend multiple times. She survived by pretending to be dead, watching as the man stole Walesha’s purse, money, and cellphone before he fled. Despite her critical injuries, the woman made her way to a neighbor’s house for help. Before she collapsed, she identified Walesha’s boyfriend as the shooter, providing crucial information to the New Orleans Police Department. Paris was rushed to a local hospital but died from her injuries a few hours later. The family friend was also hospitalized and eventually recovered.

Based on the survivor's testimony and statements from other witnesses, the NOPD quickly identified 25-year-old Dwayne Martin as the suspect in the double homicide. Investigators learned that he and Walesha were in a romantic relationship that was marred by domestic violence, and that she had tried to leave him on more than one occasion. A warrant was issued for Martin's arrest on two counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted second-degree murder.

A manhunt for Martin ended two days later, on March 5, 2015, when he was arrested by U.S. Marshals and local deputies in Pensacola, Florida. He was taken into custody after attempting to burglarize a home there, reportedly telling the resident he needed gasoline. After facing charges in Florida for burglary and resisting arrest, Martin was extradited to New Orleans to face the murder charges.

In February 2018, nearly three years after the brutal slayings, Dwayne Martin pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter for the deaths of Walesha and Paris Williams. He also pleaded guilty to an unrelated armed robbery charge. Under the terms of his plea agreement, he was sentenced to a total of 80 years in prison—40 years for each manslaughter count, to be served consecutively.

The violent deaths of a mother and her young daughter devastated their family and shocked the community. "We are just devastated," a family friend said. "Paris didn't even get a chance to live." Relatives wailed in grief outside the bloodied home, with one aunt crying out, "It’s not fair. She was sleeping. This baby was in her bed. Oh, my God, she was in the bed!" A joint funeral service for Walesha and Paris was held on March 14, 2015, at The Apostolic Church at New Orleans, where friends and family gathered to mourn their profound loss. The case is now considered closed, with the perpetrator serving his sentence.