On the evening of Monday, March 16, 2015, 18-year-old Steve G. Brackens III was fatally shot in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans. Brackens, who had graduated from L.B. Landry High School the year before, was standing in front of a house on the 1200 block of Sumner Street talking with two other males, ages 18 and 70, when a dark-colored SUV drove by and an occupant opened fire. Brackens was struck twice and later died at University Medical Center. It is unclear whether the two men with him were injured.

No arrests have been made and authorities have not publicly identified any suspects; the investigation remains an open homicide case. His family lost a recent graduate, a son, and a brother in a sudden act of violence that has left questions unanswered.

If anyone has information about what happened that night on Sumner Street, please come forward to help bring answers and justice.