New Orleans police are searching for a suspect after a shooting in New Orleans East, leaving a victim hospitalized and detectives asking the public not to approach the person. The shooting occurred around midnight on September 14 in the 4300 block of Werner Drive.
Reports of shots fired around midnight were followed by a report that a man had been shot, according to WWL-TV. The victim was taken to the hospital, though police have not released an update on his condition. The New Orleans Police Department announcement does not provide a verified identification or warrant detail for a named suspect.
Police consider the suspect armed and dangerous and are warning residents not to approach him if spotted. Anyone with information on the shooting or the suspect's whereabouts is asked to call detectives at 504-658-6070. The relationship between the suspect and the victim, along with a motive for the shooting, remains unknown, and it is not clear whether the suspect remains in the Greater New Orleans area. As with any pending case, the suspect is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
A Stiff Penalty If Convicted
Attempted second-degree murder is addressed under La. R.S. 14:27 and 14:30.1. The cited legal discussion describes a term of years for the offense, with details available at FindLaw. Prosecutors would need to prove the charge to secure a conviction.
Same Block Saw a Cutting Warrant Just Months Earlier
This is not the first time this stretch of Werner Drive has drawn a police manhunt this year. Three months before the September shooting, Seventh District detectives sought Kendrich D. Mackie in connection with an aggravated battery by cutting that happened around 12:30 a.m. on June 7 in that same 4300 block, a case Hoodline previously covered in June. The block also made headlines back in March 2021, when an NOPD officer unholstered his firearm during a parking stop there, leading to a struggle and a nonfatal weapon discharge that ultimately resulted in the officer's termination, per reporting at the time.
Citywide Violence Is Down, But New Orleans East Keeps Making Headlines
The Werner Drive shooting arrives amid broader discussion of crime across New Orleans. The available source material does not provide verified nonfatal-shooting or homicide figures, comparisons, or explanations for any decline.
Still, isolated violent incidents keep surfacing across New Orleans East. Hoodline has reported on several other recent shootings in the area, including a shooting near Kingsport Boulevard and Curran Boulevard in Little Woods.
Public sentiment toward the department, meanwhile, is not quantified in the available source material.
How to Report a Tip
Anyone with information about the suspect's whereabouts is urged to contact NOPD Seventh District detectives directly, or to submit an anonymous tip to Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans by phone or online.
