NEW ORLEANS — A scary scene was caught on camera in the Marigny neighborhood in New Orleans earlier this week.
It shows two gunmen, shooting and killing a man outside Big Daddy’s bar. The gunfire happened Tuesday around 2 a.m.
Two men in hoodies approached the corner of Royal Street and Franklin Avenue, carrying guns behind their backs. One is an AR-15 style rifle. Seconds later, they take turns firing down the street at a man outside the bar.
They shot for about 15 seconds before they ran off and reportedly left the area in a white SUV. Neighbors heard the gunshots.
“I was sleeping and I kind of just rolled off of the bed on to the ground,” Matthew Wade Kodrin said. “I guess it’s kind of muscle memory from Afghanistan.”
Kodrin spent eight years as an U.S. Army paratrooper.
“I attempted to render aid, but the victim, he was not breathing, he didn’t have any pulse and wasn’t responsive,” he said.
Lorelei Cropley can see Big Daddy’s from her balcony.
“Seeing somebody dying across the street from you and blood being washed away, the bullets, the glasses, it’s very traumatizing,” Cropley said.
Neighbors say the shooting victim did not appear to be a regular either at Big Daddy’s or Anna’s, another bar across the street.
Cropley said the shooting appeared to be targeted.
“Versus somebody fighting, voices escalating, and guns being pulled. This seemed completely out of nowhere. There was no noise. It was quiet that night.”
“We’ve been hearing a story that everything’s fine with NOPD for a very long time,” Kodrin said. “I don’t know if that’s true or not, but what’s happening in this city is not okay and that needs to be addressed.”
Speaking on WWL Radio, city council VP J.P. Morrell said New Orleans should start by replacing NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson.
“It’s very disturbing that the police chief, NOPD cannot articulate what their crime plan is, Morrell said. “Right now, the moment that is facing the city is beyond the chief. We need a national search for an innovated chief who’s going to come here and solve problems.”
Southern University of New Orleans Criminologist Dr. John Penny says simply firing Ferguson without coming up with a plan and resources to address the surge in violence only sticks the next chief with the same problems.
“Let’s be careful to assess what our need is right now before we make a rash decision,” Penny said. “Certainly not make political decision right now.”
Back in the Marigny – neighbors weighed in on whether Ferguson could lose his job.
“I don’t blame the police chief,” Cropley said. “I actually am looking for solutions that are going to start from the community and up.”
“The longer I guess I sat with it, I feel that this is just a symptom of a lot of problems in this city that have come to a head,” Kodrin said. “I think it’s something a lot of people share blame in.”
Police have not identified the 30-year-old man who died outside Big Daddy’s.
They have not named any suspects.
Late Wednesday, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell released a statement in support of her embattled police chief.
"I appointed Commander Shaun Ferguson as chief of the New Orleans Police Department in January 2019," said Mayor Cantrell. "It is a decision that I unequivocally stand by today. Chief Ferguson continues to have my unwavering support and trust as do all the women and men of the New Orleans Police Department. I have full confidence in Chief Ferguson's leadership and in his plan to keep the residents of Orleans Parish safe. He is deserving of our respect and support."
Anyone willing to share information that can help police in the investigation can call CrimeStoppers at 504.822.1111 or toll-free 1.877.903.7867
After an autopsy, the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office will release the victim's name and the official cause of death but not before getting in touch with the victim's family.
Homicide Detective John Bakulu is in charge of the investigation and can be reached at (504) 658-5300.
Anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact NOPD at (504) 821-2222 or Crimestoppers at (504) 822-1111, toll free 1-877-903-7867.
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