Latest news with #RedajaWilliams
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Mom of 2 Shot and Killed While Walking Her Child to the Bus Stop: 'We Want the Killer Caught ASAP'
Redaja 'Juicy' Williams was fatally shot in front of her 7-year-old daughter on the way to school Wednesday, Aug. 13 NEED TO KNOW Redaja 'Juicy' Williams, 23, was fatally shot while taking her 7-year-old daughter to the bus stop on Wednesday, Aug. 13 Authorities transported her from the scene to the University of Louisville Hospital, where she was pronounced deceased The Louisville Metro Police Department is still looking for a suspect A 23-year-old mother of two was killed while taking her child to school. Around 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 13, the young mother was taking her 7-year-old daughter to the bus stop near Coleridge-Taylor Montessori Elementary School in Louisville, Ky., the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) said in a statement. Redaja 'Juicy' Williams was identified as the victim by her family, according to WHAS11. In addition to being a mother to her daughter, she also has a 2-year-old child. Once LMPD arrived at the scene, Williams was taken to the University of Louisville Hospital, where she was pronounced deceased, according to LMPD Chief Paul L. Humphrey. "I screamed, I yelled, I made everybody get down," witness Kendra LaRue told WLKY. "I have children running this way, children running to the Y. Children running over there, right along with my daughter and a couple of our friends, and then my second reaction is to the person who is on the ground." "Every time I close my eyes, I see her, and I hear her breath," LaRue said. "I hear her gasping for air.' Authorities initially questioned a 15-year-old boy as the suspect. However, he was later released and then charged in an unrelated shooting in the same area that took place on Aug. 7. LMPD is still looking for the suspect. Williams' sister, Lavett Knuckles, told reporters she witnessed the fatal shooting. 'I had to watch my sister lay on that ground and take her last breath," Knuckles said, per WKLY. "There was nothing I could do about it.' 'This is my daughter's bus stop as well. She witnessed this, too," Knuckles said. "She's traumatized, so many questions.' 'We want the killer caught ASAP,' Williams' mother, Schreida Simmons, said, per WHAS11. She also said that her daughter 'was the life of the party.' "She'd light up the room every time she came in – you'd know it was Juicy," Williams' cousin, Twand Howard, said. Williams' aunt, Donna Cole, asked the public to remember her niece and her legacy while she spoke at a press conference on Thursday, Aug. 14. "I'm traumatized. I live in fear. Not that they're going to do anything to me, but to another person's child," Cole said. 'Be angry every day. Be proactive in your community. Be proactive in your neighborhood. Don't talk about it. Be about it.'At the press conference, Williams' great-uncle, Kenneth Simmons, and Williams' uncle urged the suspect to come forward. "If you're real men, say who done it. Please. 'Cause it may be your child next." 'You can't even go to the grocery store without somebody wanting to shoot you, or rob you, or carjack you,' Williams' grandfather, Bruce Simmons, said, per WAVE. 'It's gotta stop somewhere.' On Wednesday, Humphrey confirmed that the children who witnessed the shooting will be offered counseling from Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS), the nearby YMCA and the Office of Violence Prevention. 'I know JCPS has counselors within their schools that'll make sure that they get with these kids and offer the support that they need to get through this tragedy,' he said. 'Understand you don't get through something like this as a young person. This is something that changes you forever," Humphrey said. "So whether it's the formal support that we'll get whether it's provided by Louisville Metro or JCPS or private institutions, these kids are forever impacted by this," he concluded. "And we have to recognize that and we have to recognize that as a community that. That formal support is not where it should stop and we should continue with that." LMPD requests anyone with information to use their anonymous tip line at 502-574-LMPD or the online anonymous crime tip hotline. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. A representative for the Louisville Metro Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for more information on Thursday. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Mom-of-two shot dead by 'pathetic' killer while walking children to school
A young mother-of-two was shot dead while walking her daughter to a Louisville bus stop, sparking community devastation as police search for the 'pathetic' killer. Redaja Williams, 23, died on Wednesday around 8am in the Russell neighborhood of the Kentucky city. There are several bus stops, a YMCA and two schools in the area Williams was killed. Dozens of children watched on in horror as she fell to the ground. First responders rushed to the scene and took Williams to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Her daughter was thankfully unharmed. 'It is unacceptable that people simply trying to go to school must fear for their safety,' Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) Chief Paul Humphrey said, WDRB reported. 'Kids should be able to go to school - go to the bus stop in the morning - without any fear of gun violence, without any fear of having to run for their life in the morning.' The suspect, who police say is a black man who was wearing a red sweatshirt and black sweatpants, is still at large. 'She was innocent, she was a bystander,' Williams' good friend Angel Mitchell told WDRB. Williams' two kids are just two and seven years old. Her family has spoken out about her horrifying death to demand justice for their loved one who died too soon. Her sister Lavett, who was with Williams when she was shot, described her as a 'kind-hearted' mother who was not afraid to speak her mind. 'But most of all, she was caring and very loving to her family,' the heartbroken sister said moments before she started to sob. 'And I'm so devastated because I had to watch my sister lay on that ground and take her last breath. 'And there was nothing I can do about it.' 'She was a really outgoing young lady, she loved people and kids, she had her ways about doing things, but she was loved by her family,' her grandfather Bruce Simmons, told WLKY. 'I'm her granddad dad, and I loved her dearly. I am going to miss her.' Williams' family and friends called her 'Juicy,' but her aunt Donna Cole wants her real name to never be forgotten. 'But her name is Redaja Williams. Say it. Remember it,' she passionately asserted during a Thursday press conference attended by community leaders. 'My heart goes out to every parent, every child, that was on that bus stop,' Louisville Metro Councilwoman Tammy Hawkins said during the conference, touching upon a broader issue of violence within the Louisville community. She said there needs to be a strengthened relationship between community members and the LMPD in order for future tragedies to be prevented. Williams' gut-wrenching death is the second bus stop shooting within just a week to shake the Russell neighborhood. On August 7, the first day of school for Jefferson County Public Schools, two tens fired shots at each other at a bus stop. Just as Wednesday's incident, dozens of children looked on in terror as they waited for their buses to arrive. 'I'm scared to walk around because of all the shooting,' a 10-year-old boy from the neighborhood told WDRB. Two 15-year-olds were arrested in relation to the shooting, each facing 34 charges. 'This is a traumatic event for so many people that changes neighborhoods for the worse,' chief Humphrey told WDRB. 'The is the second time in a week that we're talking about this, and it's absolutely pathetic.' One of the teens was actually arrested after Williams' shooting, but homicide detectives determined he was allegedly involved in the one a week prior, but did not pull the trigger on Williams. 'I'm outraged. Not just today for Redaja, but for every child whose family I've comforted,' Cole said at the Thursday press conference. 'Let me tell you something. They can't be more outraged for us than we are. Boots on the ground. We're talking about what needs to be done, get in your communities.'
Fox News
4 days ago
- Fox News
Louisville woman shot and killed walking child to school bus stop
Police in Kentucky are searching for a suspect who shot a woman dead at a school bus stop. It happened around 8 a.m. Wednesday, the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) said, adding on its Facebook page that a suspect was detained "but after being interviewed and reviewing more video, we determined this person was there but did not pull the trigger." The victim was identified by her family as Redaja Williams, 23, WLKY reported. Police posted two pictures of someone in a red sweatshirt and dark sweatpants with dark shoes that investigators are looking to speak to. The shooting happened near Chestnut Street Family YMCA, Coleridge-Taylor Montessori Elementary School, Central High School and several bus stops, WDRB reported. The child the woman was with was not injured. Several children were at the bus stop and witnessed the deadly shooting, WDRB reported. "It is unacceptable that people simply trying to go to school must fear for their safety," LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey said, according to the TV station. "The Jefferson County Coroner's Office will release the name of the victim once the next of kin has been properly notified," a spokesperson for the department told Fox News Digital. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the anonymous tip line at 502-574-LMPD or use the online anonymous crime tip hotline.
New York Post
4 days ago
- New York Post
Mom of 2 shot dead walking her kid to school in Kentucky — police chief slams ‘absolutely pathetic' killers
A young mom of two has been shot dead while walking her child to school in Louisville, Kentucky — sparking a furious tirade from the city's police chief against the 'absolutely pathetic' killers. Redaja Williams, 23, was taking her child to the bus stop at around 8 a.m. Wednesday when she was shot and later died from her injuries in the University of Louisville Health Hospital. Her child wasn't injured in the shooting, the second to take place at the bus stop just west of Downtown Louisville in the span of a week, WDRB reports. 'Kids should be able to go to school – go to the bus stop in the morning – without any fear of gun violence, without any fear of having to run for their life in the morning,' Louisville Metro Police Chief Paul Humphrey fumed during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon. 4 Mom of two Redaja Williams, 23, was shot and killed walking her child to school in Louisville, KY on Wednesday morning. Facebook 'It's absolutely unacceptable that these types of incidents have happened now twice in the last week,' he said. 'This is the second time in a week that we're talking about this, and it's absolutely pathetic.' The killer is still at large, Humphrey said. He is described as a young black male wearing a red hooded sweatshirt and black sweatpants, and a security footage grab of the suspect has been released. On Wednesday, police arrested and questioned a 15-year-old boy near Shawnee High School, but it was later determined that he didn't pull the trigger, even though he was at the scene of the shooting, Humphrey said. 4 Louisville Police Chief Paul Humphrey has branded the killing of a mom outside a school 'absolutely pathetic.' WDRB Several children were at the bus stop at the time of the shooting. 'It is unacceptable that people simply trying to go to school must fear for their safety,' Humphrey said. Homicide rates in Louisville are down in recent years, Humphrey stressed, but added that more still needs to be done. 4 Police released a security footage grab of the suspected killer. LMPD / X 'It's not where it needs to be,' he admitted. Williams leaves behind two kids, ages 2 and 7, her family said. 'My niece was killed yesterday in front of her daughter and her niece and all the other children who was on the bus,' Williams' aunt, Donna Cole, told a press conference on Thursday. 'I'm traumatized. I live in fear. Not that they're going to do anything to me but to another person's child.' 4 Williams leaves behind two kids, ages 2 and 7. Angel Marie / Facebook The shooting came just six days after a gunman opened fire at the same bus stop on Aug. 7, the first day back for Jefferson County Public Schools. A 15-year-old is facing 34 charges including wanton endangerment and possession of a handgun by a minor, WDRB reported. Louisville Mayor, Democrat Craig Greenberg, also voiced frustration over the shooting as he appeared alongside Chief Humphrey at Wednesday's press conference. 'My final emotion that I've had all day is I'm angry. I'm angry at the individual who killed this woman [on Wednesday],' he said. 'I'm angry at the two people who shot at the same bus stop last week. I'm angry that people still do this in 2025 in our city.'
