Saturday, March 10, 2012

Shreveport, LA: Shooting suspect surrenders to police

A domestic dispute, Shreveport police say, left one man dead and another man behind bars on a murder charge.

The Monday morning shooting marked the fourth this year for Shreveport, and the second in three days for the Shreveport-Bossier City area.

Damian Pipkins, 30, turned himself in at the Shreveport Police Complex around 1 p.m. after learning police were searching for him, according to Sgt. Bill Goodin, spokesman for Shreveport police. Pipkins was charged with the second-degree murder of 35-year-old McDaniel Smith III.

Smith was found dead in the street in the 200 block of Webster in Shreveport's Allendale neighborhood around 4:15 a.m. That block is home to only a few households, including Pipkins and some of his family members.

Police believe Smith was arguing with a woman with whom he was romantically involved when Pipkins entered the dispute then shot Smith at some point during a fight.

Family and neighbors said they didn't know Smith, the woman or how they were involved with Pipkins. Some heard five or six shots fired that morning, but only came outside once police arrived.

Barbara Pipkins, Damian Pipkins' grandmother and neighbor, said she was preparing to leave for work around the time of the incident. She opened her door Monday morning in time to speak to detectives on the scene and said she told them that she didn't know what happened.

"I take care of my own business. I don't get involved with what goes on over there," she said of her grandson's home two doors down. "Damian is a very good young man. He's very respectful of his grandparents. That's the side I know of him."

Detectives reported finding ammunition and a substantial amount of cocaine during a search of Pipkins's home, Goodin said. Shreveport police also impounded two vehicles from the scene, Goodin said. Pipkins' vehicle remained outside his home for the entire day following the shooting.

Pipkins was charged with possession with intent to distribute a Schedule I controlled dangerous substance in April 2006 and violating a protective order last year. Smith had several drug charges between 1998 and 2000 as well as two weapons charges in 2006.

Monday's killing was the fourth in Shreveport this year.

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