A Jefferson Parish jury convicted 43-year-old Jakita Johnson-Nash of second-degree murder Friday, Oct. 23, for fatally shooting her ex-girlfriend, Charlene Jarreau, in December 2022. Jurors also found Johnson-Nash guilty of obstruction of justice and witness intimidation, but acquitted her of a second-degree kidnapping charge tied to a witness in the case.
A Jury Rejects the Mental Illness Defense
Prosecutors argued that Johnson-Nash pursued Jarreau for about 33 minutes before the shooting, according to court documents cited by the Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office. The office said jurors rejected the defense argument that mental illness meant Johnson-Nash could not be held criminally responsible. District Attorney Paul Connick Jr. announced the verdict, according to the office.
Jarreau, 42, and Johnson-Nash had ended a yearlong relationship earlier in 2022. On Dec. 6, Johnson-Nash went to the St. Claude home where Jarreau was living with her mother and visiting with a new girlfriend, the District Attorney's Office said. Johnson-Nash arrived in a 2002 Chevrolet Tahoe with a pistol, argued with Jarreau and slashed the tires on her mother's truck, according to the office. She had called and texted Jarreau throughout the day.
Evidence Presented at Trial
The two women later went to Bunch Village, where witnesses described a fight following an argument. Two witnesses said they heard Johnson-Nash tell Jarreau, “If I can't have you, no one else can,” according to the District Attorney's Office. Surveillance video obtained by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office showed Jarreau trying to get away before the shooting, WGNO reported.
The District Attorney's Office said forensic evidence showed Jarreau was shot in the back left side of her neck, severing her spinal cord. NOLA.com's initial report quoted the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office as saying Jarreau had been shot at least once in the head and was pronounced dead at the scene. The available accounts do not resolve the difference in their descriptions of the wound.
Charges Shifted Before Trial
Detectives arrested Johnson-Nash two days after the killing, the District Attorney's Office said. Contemporaneous reporting from NOLA.com at the time said Jakita Johnson, 39, of Marrero, was booked with first-degree murder, second-degree kidnapping and obstruction of justice. A later NOLA.com report said she was instead charged with second-degree murder, obstruction of justice, second-degree kidnapping and intimidation of a witness. The District Attorney's Office said the obstruction-of-justice charge stemmed from Johnson-Nash's attempt to eliminate evidence, including burning and bleaching clothing.
By the time the case reached trial, jurors ultimately convicted Johnson-Nash as charged of second-degree murder along with obstruction of justice and witness intimidation, while acquitting her on the kidnapping count. Johnson-Nash is scheduled to be sentenced on December 2, as noted by WGNO.
A Pattern Louisiana Advocates Track Closely
The case comes amid longstanding concerns about domestic-violence deaths in Louisiana. The Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence says it tracks homicides primarily through media reports to monitor yearly trends and inform policy work. The coalition has noted that Louisiana ranked fifth nationally in 2020 for the rate of women murdered by men. The Louisiana Department of Health’s 2024 Domestic Abuse Fatality Review Annual Report says the Louisiana Violent Death Reporting System recorded 181 Louisiana residents dying due to intimate partner violence from 2020 through 2022, and that firearms were involved in about 75% of intimate partner homicides in Louisiana. Those statewide figures do not establish how a weapon was used in this case. The report also recommends that healthcare providers build relationships with local domestic-violence service providers to connect patients with support. Separately, the state panel reviewed 26 domestic-violence-related homicide cases from 2022.
Finding Help in Jefferson Parish
Jefferson Parish’s April 2025 resource guide lists Metro Centers for Community Advocacy as offering a 24-hour crisis line, limited emergency-shelter placement and referrals for people who have experienced domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking. The guide is published by the Jefferson Parish Human Services Authority.
