Solomon J. Blackbird was 33 when he was shot in the early evening of November 1, 2020. Officers responded to a call at 6:46 p.m. and found him in the 2600 block of Douglas Street in Sioux City, Iowa, with a serious gunshot wound. He was taken to MercyOne but died from his injuries.

Sioux City detectives identified 36-year-old Roderick D. Banks as a suspect and obtained a murder warrant. Investigators reported a possible link between the shooting and a drug transaction. Banks fled Iowa but was located in Prichard, Alabama, and arrested by a Gulf Coast Fugitive Task Force on February 8, 2021; he was extradited to Sioux City.

Banks was initially charged with first-degree murder; his trial began in Woodbury County District Court but ended when he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and felon in possession of a firearm. He received consecutive sentences of up to 15 years and up to five years, with a minimum of three years before parole eligibility, and was ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution to Blackbird’s estate.

If anyone knew Solomon or has information about the circumstances on Douglas Street that night, please share what is known.