A verbal altercation on a Savannah street in the summer of 2022 tragically escalated, leading to the death of Dominique Richardson, a 33-year-old Black man. The shooting, which occurred on the afternoon of July 21, also left a second man injured.
Just after 1 p.m., Savannah Police Department officers were dispatched to the 5400 block of Robinson Circle following reports of a shooting. Upon arrival, they found two men with gunshot wounds. Richardson and 20-year-old Isiah Foust were both rushed to a local hospital for treatment. Richardson, however, succumbed to his injuries and died. Foust was treated for wounds that were described as non-life-threatening.
The investigation into the shooting began immediately. According to police, the incident stemmed from a verbal dispute between the two victims and a third man.
Investigators at the scene quickly identified 30-year-old James Dwight Dean as a suspect, and he was taken into custody that same day.
Dean was booked into the Chatham County jail on July 21, 2022, on initial charges of murder and aggravated assault. Nearly a year later, in June 2023, a grand jury formally indicted him on multiple counts related to the shooting. The charges included one count of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, and three counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
The case against Dean was still proceeding through the legal system as of early 2024. A news report from March 2024 noted that the lead prosecutor in the case had left the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office, but a replacement was expected to be assigned. As of that update, the case remained in litigation.
