Joseph Johnson was 16 and a student at Woodward High School when he was fatally shot on the morning of March 4, 2025, in the 900 block of Woodward Avenue in Toledo. He was speaking with someone who had pulled up in a vehicle when he was shot at least once in the chest. Emergency responders found him collapsed on a porch; he was taken to Mercy Health St. Vincent Medical Center in critical condition and later died. The Lucas County Coroner’s Office ruled the cause of death a gunshot wound to the back and classified the death as a homicide.

Investigators used video surveillance and witness interviews and say the suspects arrived to complete a gun sale with Johnson. A vehicle connected to the incident was stopped on Sylvania Avenue, and several people were detained for questioning. A Lucas County grand jury later indicted four individuals on charges including aggravated murder, murder, aggravated robbery, felonious assault, and discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises: Omarion Coleman, 22; Shamur Hughes, 22; Delveon Lear, 23; and Diamani Lear, 22. Delveon and Diamani Lear also face gang-related charges, and Delveon faces a weapons-under-disability count.

The community and Johnson’s family mourn a young life lost to gun violence. If anyone saw activity in the 900 block of Woodward Avenue on March 4 or has information about the shooting, please come forward.