On the evening of February 29, 2024, at about 8:43 p.m., Gastonia police responded to a reported shooting at a residence on South Weldon Street. Officers found 53-year-old Gerald Lee Humphries Sr. dead of a gunshot wound. Investigators say Humphries and his daughter’s boyfriend, 30-year-old Darnell Shanquavius Fowler, were involved in a domestic dispute at the home and that both men were armed when the altercation escalated and Humphries was shot.

Fowler lived at the same address, was arrested after the incident and charged with possessing a stolen firearm. He was booked into the Gaston County Jail. The Gaston County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and the investigation remained open in the days following the shooting. Records show Humphries had a prior arrest on January 18, 2023 for assault by strangulation.

Did anyone in the Gastonia area know Gerald Humphries or see anything at South Weldon Street that night?