Louisiana
Officials probing how Louisiana gunman who killed 8 children got the weapon
SHREVEPORT, La. — Investigators are looking into how a former National Guardsman identified as the gunman who killed eight children in Louisiana on Sunday got a gun — despite an illegal firearms conviction on his record.
Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is probing how the man obtained the assault-style pistol used in the shooting, which he described as a domestic violence incident.
Shamar Elkins was arrested in 2019 and convicted of illegal use of a firearm. Shreveport Police spokesman Christopher Bordelon said Elkins was likely prohibited from legally owning firearms because of that conviction.
In an interview, Bordelon said Elkins shot most of the children in the head and “probably still in their sleep.” Elkins was the father of seven of the eight children who were killed, Bordelon said; one of the children was a cousin, according to the coroner’s office.
“It is a disgusting and evil scene,” Bordelon told NBC News.
Elkins also shot and seriously injured his wife and another woman believed to be his girlfriend, police said.
He fled the scene and died in front of a home nearby, authorities said. It was not known whether he was fatally shot by law enforcement officers or died by suicide, Smith told reporters at a news conference Monday.
The mass shooting, one of the worst in the U.S. in recent years, sent waves of shock and grief through Shreveport. Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux described it as “maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had” in the city.
In an emotional news conference Monday, city and state officials condemned the bloodshed and called on community members to advocate for victims of domestic violence.
“We cannot afford to treat domestic violence as an afterthought. We must ensure that every victim, every mother, every father, every child has access to safety,” Caddo Parish Sheriff Henry L. Whitehorn Sr. said.
The Caddo Parish Coroner’s Office, citing information provided by the children’s mothers, identified the victims as Jayla Elkins, 3, Shayla Elkins, 5, Kayla Pugh, 6, Layla Pugh, 7, Markaydon Pugh, 10, Sariahh Snow, 11, Khedarrion Snow, 6, and Braylon Snow, 5.
Elkins served in the Louisiana Army National Guard as a signal support system specialist and a fire support specialist from August 2013 to August 2020, the Army said. He never deployed and left the National Guard as a private.
Shreveport police officers responded to the 300 block of West 79th street just after 6 a.m. local time after reports of a domestic disturbance, authorities told reporters.
Elkins first shot a woman on nearby Harrison Street before he went to the West 79th Street home, where he killed the children, authorities said. He then fled and carjacked a person at gunpoint near the intersection of Linwood Avenue and West 79th Street.
Police officers exchanged gunfire with Elkins in neighboring Bossier Parish after a pursuit, Smith told reporters Monday.
Police initially said that officers fatally shot Elkins at that scene, but Smith said Monday that Elkins’ cause of death was still under investigation.
In September 2017, a judge granted Elkins and Sariahh’s mother joint custody following a petition to determine paternity and establish child support, according to court records reviewed by NBC News.
The photo at the top of Elkin’s Facebook profile, which has been verified by NBC News, shows him posing with eight children, including a baby seated on his lap.
On April 9, Elkins reposted a poem addressed to God. “Today I ask You to help me guard my mind and my emotions,” it reads in part. “When negativity arises, remind me to say, ‘It does not belong to me, in the name of Jesus.’”
Ryan Chandler reported from Shreveport, and Daniel Arkin from New York.
If you or someone you know is facing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence hotline for help at (800) 799-SAFE (7233), or go to www.thehotline.org for more. States often have domestic violence hotlines as well.
MONDAY
RED STICK FLY FISHERS PROGRAM: 7 p.m., Bluebonnet Regional Library, 9200 Bluebonnet Blvd., Baton Rouge. Open to the public. Email Brian Roberts: roberts.brian84@gmail.com. Website: rsff.org
WEDNESDAY
FLIES & FLIGHTS: 7-9 p.m, Rally Cap Brewing, 11212 Pennywood Ave., Baton Rouge. Casual fly tying. Open to public. Email Chris Williams: thefatfingeredflytyer@gmail.com
THURSDAY
ACADIANA FLY RODDERS PROGRAM: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Open to public. Email Darin Lee: at cbrsandcdc@gmail.com. Website: acadianaflyrodders.org
FRIENDS OF NRA/SOUTHWEST LA BANQUET: 6 p.m., Riverside Bar & Grill, 3748 Louisiana 3059, Lake Charles. Call Brack Cole 337-912-1620. Email: jbcoleair@yahoo.com
ONGOING
STATEWIDE TOURNAMENT & ANGLERS RODEO/S.T.A.R.: Through Sept. 7, Coastal Conservation Association’s summer-long fishing event. Tagged redfish, coastal/offshore species categories & youth division. CCA membership required. Website: ccalouisiana.com/star
LOTTERY HUNTS
DOVE/TEAL: July 27 application deadline for dove hunt on Elbow Slough Wildlife Management Area and teal hunt on White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area. Website applications only on Wildlife & Fisheries/Louisiana Outdoors License, Permits and Tags webpage. Fee $8.50. Details: dove hunt, David Hayden at dhayden@wlf.la.gov; teal hunt, Lance Ardoin at lardoin@wlf.la.gov
AROUND THE CORNER
JULY 21 — LAFAYETTE KAYAK FISHING CLUB MEETING: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Call 337-232-5854. Website: lafayettekayakfishing.com
JULY 21-22 — GULF COUNCIL SHRIMP COMMITTEE MEETING: Gulf Council office, 4107 W. Spruce St., Tampa, Florida. In conjunction with Scientific and Statistical committees. Website: gulfcouncil.org
JULY 23 — ACADIANA BUGS & BREWS: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Casual fly tying and local beers provided. Open to the public. Email Darin Lee: cbrsandcdc@gmail.com. Website: packpaddle.com
JULY 23-25 — International Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo, Grand Isle Marina & Otto Candies Pavilion, Grand Isle. Website: tarponrodeo.org
JULY 24-25—BASSMASTER JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP: Kentucky Lake, Paris, Tennessee. Website: bassmaster.com
JULY 26 — SOUTH LOUISIANA HIGHPOWER CLUB MATCH: 8:30 a.m., Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Range, St. Landry Road, Gonzales. NRA XTC & F-Class match rifle or service rifle, 200-yard/50-rounds match course. Fee $15 members, $20 nonmembers, $5 juniors. $25 annual club (first match free) and Civilian Marksmanship Program membership (allows purchases from CMP). Call Mike Burke, 337-380-8120. Email: SouthLAHighPower@hotmail.com
FISHING/SHRIMPING
SHRIMP: Spring inshore season closed except for Breton/Chandeleur sounds; all outside waters open.
OPEN RECREATIONAL SEASONS: Private recreational red snapper; gray triggerfish; flounder; lane, blackfin, queen and silk snappers and wenchmen among other snapper species; all groupers except closed for goliath and Nassau groupers in state/federal waters.
CLOSED SEASONS: Greater amberjack; bluefin tuna; gag, goliath and Nassau groupers in state/federal waters. Commercial greater amberjack season closed.
LDWF UPDATES
Closed: Roads on Pomme de Terre, Richard Yancey & Bogue Chitto WMAs (flooding)
Drawdowns: Saline Lake (Natchitoches/Winn parishes through Oct. 5); Iatt Lake (Grant Parish through Oct. 5).
Louisiana State Police reported an Ascension Parish resident died in a fatal crash in Livingston Parish.
According to an LSP Troop A news release, 68-year-old Gwendolyn Blank of St. Amant died in the two-vehicle crash along Highway 1032 near Debbie Lane around 3:30 p.m. July 11.
Per the release, the preliminary investigation found that a 2016 Toyota Avalon was traveling south on the highway when, at the same time, a 2023 Dodge Ram was traveling northbound.
For reasons still under investigation, the Toyota crossed the center line in a left-hand curve and collided head-on with the truck, troopers reported in the realease.
Blank, who was the front seat passenger in the car, sustained serious injuries and was transported to a hospital, where she later died, according to LSP.
Troopers reported the driver of the car sustained moderate injuries, and a juvenile rear-seat passenger had minor injuries, while the driver of the truck received minor injuries.
CATAHOULA PARISH, La. (KALB) – Judge John Reeves, who serves the 7th Judicial District Court in Catahoula and Concordia parishes, pleaded guilty in a Judiciary Commission investigation to having engaged in misconduct in his actions at the judge’s bench.
The investigation, in conjunction with admissions of guilt by Reeves, found he:
- issued a legally deficient verbal order of visitation in a child custody case
- issued a legally deficient verbal search warrant in a criminal case
- allowed two members of his court staff to seek appointment as reserve deputies of the Catahoula Parish Sheriff’s Office
- failed to timely recuse himself in a criminal case and gave the appearance of bias
- failed to comply with the Code of Criminal Procedure in reducing, revoking, and subsequently reinstating the defendant’s bond in a criminal case.
The Louisiana Supreme Court issued an opinion on June 25 agreeing with the Commission’s findings.
In acceptance of Reeve’s admissions, his four-month suspension will last from August 31, through the end of his term in office on December 31, 2026.
In addition to the suspension, Reeves must pay $6,148 to the Judiciary Commission of Louisiana.
Read the opinion by clicking here.
Click here to report a typo. Please provide the title of the article in your email.
Copyright 2026 KALB. All rights reserved.
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