On the morning of Wednesday, December 17, 2003, 22-year-old Jovani Jefferson was fatally shot in Washington, D.C. The shooting occurred around 10:15 a.m. near 51st Street and Call Place SE. Jefferson was struck in the lower back, tried to flee, collapsed shortly after, and died at a hospital about three hours later.

A six-year-old girl walking nearby with her family was also struck by a stray bullet and taken to the hospital in critical condition. Witnesses reported hearing five shots, a pause, then two more. Jefferson had recently been paroled after two years for car theft and cocaine possession; the neighborhood was described as having problems with drug activity and violence. Despite witnesses and a police reward, no arrests have been announced and the homicide remains unsolved.

Jovani was the son of Aydee Perez and John A. Jefferson and a brother to three sisters. If anyone has information about what happened that morning, please share it with the Metropolitan Police Department.