A New Orleans woman was shot at her own front door Friday morning after she answered a knock and found the father of her child waiting outside with a gun, according to police. The New Orleans Police Department is now searching for 's whereabouts, accused of opening fire on her in the 3500 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
Police say the shooting was reported at about 9:31 a.m. Friday, as reported by WDSU. According to police, the woman heard a knock at her door, and when she opened it, Orlando Williams was there and struck her with gunfire. New Orleans Emergency Medical Services transported her to a hospital, where she was listed in unstable condition; police have provided no additional information about the extent of her injuries.
Williams is the father of the woman's child, according to police, though authorities have not detailed what led up to the shooting. He is wanted in connection with an attempted murder investigation, and police are asking anyone with information about the shooting or his whereabouts to come forward.
Where the Shooting Happened
The stretch of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard where the shooting occurred sits within NOPD's Sixth Police District, which covers Central City, Broadmoor, and the Irish Channel, according to the City of New Orleans. That district handles patrol response and preliminary investigations into violent crime across parts of Uptown and Central City. The same corridor was the site of a fatal shooting in July 2025, when a man died from a gunshot wound to the face near South Liberty Street, as Hoodline previously reported. Nearby, a police pursuit that began close to South Claiborne Avenue and MLK Boulevard in May 2026 led to a foot search and drone deployment after a driver abandoned his vehicle.
Potential Penalties If Williams Is Caught
If Williams is located, arrested, and ultimately convicted of attempted second-degree murder, Louisiana law mandates a sentence of 10 to 50 years at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence, per the 16th Judicial District of Louisiana District Attorney's Office. Prosecutors would need to establish specific intent to kill in order to secure such a conviction. High-risk fugitives wanted for violent crimes in New Orleans are often tracked down by NOPD's Violent Offender Warrant Squad working alongside the U.S. Marshals Service, specialized teams trained to safely apprehend wanted suspects.
A City Trending Toward Historic Lows in Violence
This shooting comes as New Orleans continues a multi-year decline in violent crime. The Metropolitan Crime Commission reported in August that the city has recorded 97 nonfatal shooting incidents so far this year, a 24% drop compared with the same period in 2025 and a 35% decline from 2024. Axios New Orleans reported in July that the city was on pace for its lowest annual homicide total since at least the 1960s, continuing a three-year downward trend that local and federal officials attribute to increased multi-agency coordination.
Even as overall violence trends downward, domestic and intimate partner violence remains a priority for local law enforcement. Under NOPD policies established through a federal consent decree, officers must follow a mandatory pro-arrest protocol in domestic violence cases once probable cause is established, according to The Lens. Those reforms were designed to ensure such cases are treated as serious felony offenses from the outset.
How to Help or Get Support
Anyone with information about the shooting or Williams' whereabouts is asked to contact police. Tipsters who wish to remain anonymous can also reach Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans at 504-822-1111, online, or through its mobile app, with rewards of up to $2,500 available for information leading to an arrest and indictment in violent crime cases.
Survivors of intimate partner violence or those in danger can reach the New Orleans Family Justice Center's 24/7 crisis hotline at 504-866-9554. The center, which offers free emergency shelter, legal representation, and trauma counseling, assisted more than 3,300 survivors and provided over 22,000 nights of safe housing in 2024, according to the City of New Orleans.
