A summer barbecue in Brooklyn turned fatal on June 22, 2014. Twenty-six-year-old Donnell Nashaun Smith was attending a gathering at 281 Powell Street in Brownsville when, shortly after 2 a.m., someone opened fire and Smith was struck in the head. He was found unconscious and unresponsive and later pronounced dead at Brookdale Hospital.

Witnesses said there had been no obvious fight beforehand, though the crowd was large and heavy drinking was reported. Police responded and began an investigation, but at the time no arrests had been made and no suspects were publicly identified. The motive and exact sequence of events leading to the shooting remain unclear.