Richard Charles Coutee, a 48-year-old Black man known to friends as "Rich," was described as a funny, caring, and respectful person who was a great father to his five children. A graduate of Lufkin High School, he was a beloved figure in his community, and his smile was one that many would remember.
On the night of April 3, 2023, around 11:15 p.m., Coutee was at his home in the 1100 block of Maberry Street in Lufkin, Texas, when he answered a knock at his door. He was immediately shot. Family members who were in another room heard the gunshot and called 911, but they did not see or hear the person responsible.
Lufkin Police detectives investigating the homicide identified four individuals as co-conspirators in Coutee’s death. According to an arrest affidavit, the incident occurred during a robbery. The affidavit stated that earlier that day, 17-year-old Cassidy Johnson met with 17-year-old Trederrick Sherman, who wanted to buy marijuana.
Johnson told investigators that she was asleep in her car when she was awakened by gunfire. She claimed she then saw Sherman and another man, 18-year-old Jardon Lamontre Castle, run to her vehicle. She said the two men told her they had no choice but to shoot Coutee to survive the encounter. However, a neighbor’s testimony contradicted Johnson’s claim that she was only a passenger.
By late April 2023, police had arrested Johnson and an unnamed juvenile suspect. Johnson was held in the Angelina County Jail on a $150,000 bond. The other two suspects, Sherman and Castle, remained at large for several months. On July 10, 2023, a coordinated effort by the Lufkin and Crockett Police Departments, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Texas Department of Public Safety led to Sherman's arrest at a residence in Crockett. Shortly after, U.S. Marshals apprehended Castle around midnight in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
All four suspects were charged with murder. In January 2025, Trederrick Sherman appeared in an Angelina County court for a pre-trial hearing. During the hearing, he rejected a 25-year plea deal offered by the prosecution and decided to hire new legal counsel. As of January 2025, the case against him remained pending trial.
