Second Arrest in Hollywood Street Killing Reveals Drug Deal Turned Deadly Robbery

A 21-year-old man has been arrested and booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on first-degree murder and armed robbery charges, nearly three months after a drug deal on Hollywood Street ended with a 20-year-old man shot dead and a woman wounded. Jacody Houston now faces charges of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, attempted armed robbery, and illegal use of a weapon in connection with the death of Johnathan Chambers.

Arrest documents obtained by WBRZ lay out the alleged motive for the first time: Chambers and a female companion drove to Hollywood Street around 8:30 p.m. on May 24 to sell drugs to Houston and 18-year-old LaDarius Lee. According to those records, Houston and Lee then called in additional people before opening fire on Chambers' vehicle in what investigators describe as an attempted robbery. Baton Rouge police, as reported by WAFB, said the female victim survived with injuries that were not considered life-threatening and was taken to a hospital.

How the Shooting Scene Unfolded

Officers were initially dispatched to the intersection of Beech Street and Douglas Avenue in May, where they found Chambers suffering from fatal gunshot wounds, per WAFB's report. Official records from the Baton Rouge Police Department show that it was only after arriving there that investigators traced the actual shooting to the 3300 block of Hollywood Street, according to a city update. Investigators have said the case remains an ongoing investigation, and it is not yet clear whether anyone beyond Houston and Lee will face charges for the other individuals allegedly summoned to the scene.

Houston is not a stranger to the East Baton Rouge Parish jail. Booking records show he has a prior arrest history that includes illegal possession of a stolen firearm, simple criminal damage to property, armed robbery, and attempted armed robbery, and he was previously booked in January on charges including armed robbery with a firearm and being a fugitive, according to Recently Booked.

Co-Defendant Was Caught in a Neighboring Parish

Houston's arrest completes what appears to be a major phase of the investigation, since Lee was taken into custody first. Police arrested Lee in Pointe Coupee Parish on June 12 as the initial suspect charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, and illegal use of weapons, according to Unfiltered with Kiran. Lee reportedly told police that he and other suspects fled the scene in an SUV after the gunfire. Booking records from the Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff's Office show Lee had actually been held there between June 3 and June 9 on an East Baton Rouge fugitive hold, roughly three weeks before Houston's arrest, according to the Pointe Coupee Banner.

Both defendants now face the possibility of Louisiana's harshest criminal penalty. Under Louisiana Revised Statutes § 14:30, a first-degree murder conviction carries a mandatory sentence of either the death penalty or life imprisonment at hard labor, without the possibility of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence, per the Louisiana State Legislature. The statute applies to killings committed with specific intent during an enumerated felony, such as armed robbery, which prosecutors allege occurred here.

A Violent Holiday Weekend and a Citywide Response

Chambers' killing was one of two homicides that unfolded in Baton Rouge over that Memorial Day weekend, part of a night and overnight period that also saw three total shootings and two stabbings across the city, according to Unfiltered with Kiran's reporting. The East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office has recorded 73 parishwide homicides through August 17, following 106 in 2025 and 125 in 2024, marking a slight mid-year uptick after several years of declines.

City leaders have been trying to respond. After 43 homicides had been recorded by July 1, Baton Rouge Police Chief TJ Morse and the Capital Area United Way announced $100,000 in youth program grants aimed at curbing summer crime trends among young adults, as reported by WAFB. Both Houston and Lee are 21 or younger. Separately, Mayor-President Sid Edwards launched a 100 Day Transformation Initiative in May targeting North Baton Rouge corridors near Hollywood Street, including Winbourne Avenue and North Foster Drive, for concentrated municipal services and public safety resources, according to city records.