Three arrested in connection with Sunday homicide in St. John

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, December 21, 2011

By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Authorities in St. John the Baptist Parish have arrested three men in connection with the murder of a LaPlace man in Garyville Sunday.

The Sheriff’s Office booked Chester Reese, 30, of Lutcher, with second-degree murder in the death of Garland Randall. Reese was also charged with a parole violation.

David Sharlow, 26, was booked with principal to second-degree murder and aggravated battery in addition to a parole violation. Willis Anderson, 35, of LaPlace was also booked with principal to second-degree murder and a probation violation.

Randall, 36, was shot in the chest while sitting in a vehicle stopped at the intersection of Louisiana Highway 44 and Earl Baloney Street around 9:50 a.m. Sunday, said Capt. Dane Clement, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office. Clement said a man approached the vehicle on foot and fired. A friend drove Randall to River Parishes Hospital in LaPlace for treatment. He was later transferred to University Hospital in New Orleans, where he was pronounced dead.

Clement said Randall’s murder is related to a shooting Saturday morning in which Garland Randall’s nephew Cavin Randall admitted to shooting Sharlow following a fight in the 400 block of Orange Loop.

Cavin Randall was booked with attempted second-degree murder and carrying a concealed weapon. He is being held at the Sherman Walker Correctional Facility on a $160,000 bond. Sharlow was admitted to a New Orleans hospital, where he was treated and released.

Clement said Sharlow’s aggravated battery charge stemmed from the incident Saturday. He said something was used to cut the other party’s finger prior to the shooting.

Clement said detectives had obtained arrest warrants for Reese, Sharlow and Anderson after Sunday’s shooting. Anderson was booked with obstruction of justice following the shooting Saturday and was still in jail when he was booked in Sunday’s murder.

Detectives maintained surveillance on Reese’s residence on West Main Street in Lutcher and arrested him on a fugitive warrant from St. John the Baptist Parish. He was then transferred to St. John where he was booked. Sharlow was arrested Tuesday at the Sheriff’s Office. All three men remain in jail with no bond set.

Clement said detectives are still working to piece together the details of both shootings. He said anyone who may have information is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 985-359-8769, or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111.