Bastrop, Louisiana | July 4, 2021
Fireworks lit up the night sky.
Families gathered to celebrate the Fourth of July.
At a place locals called “The Slab” on Carbon Plant Road in Bastrop, Louisiana, people had come together for another summer evening with friends and family.
Somewhere in that crowd was 10-year-old LeBron Ke’ir Robinson.
A little boy who should have been thinking about fireworks.
About food.
About summer break.
Instead, his life ended in a hail of gunfire.
A Celebration Turns Deadly
At approximately 9:00 p.m. on July 4, 2021, a vehicle drove past the gathering and unleashed a barrage of bullets into the crowd.
Chaos erupted.
People ran.
They screamed.
They dropped to the ground searching for cover.
When the gunfire stopped, LeBron had been struck in the chest.
Emergency responders rushed him to a local hospital.
Despite every effort to save him, LeBron died from his injuries.
Investigators believe the 10-year-old was not the intended target.
Police have said he was an innocent bystander caught in violence meant for someone else.
A Wall of Silence
What has haunted this case ever since is the silence.
Authorities reported that dozens of people were gathered at “The Slab” when the shooting occurred.
Yet investigators said many witnesses refused to cooperate or claimed they did not see anything.
That lack of cooperation brought the investigation to a standstill.
At the time, Bastrop police were already battling a surge of gun violence, investigating nearly 15 drive-by shootings within a two-month period.
Amid that violence, a little boy lost his life.
A Family Still Waiting
More than four years have passed.
No arrests have been made.
No one has been charged.
Although investigators identified several persons of interest early in the investigation, no criminal charges have ever been filed.
LeBron’s mother, Nydia Hatfield, and the rest of his family continue to plead for answers.
They continue to ask the community to come forward with the truth.
Because someone knows who fired into that crowd.
Someone knows who was inside that vehicle.
And a 10-year-old child’s murder should never be buried beneath fear or silence.
LeBron Ke’ir Robinson was only 10 years old.
He should have gone home that night.
Instead, his family was left planning a funeral instead of making summer memories.
Anyone with information regarding the murder of LeBron Ke’ir Robinson is urged to contact North Delta Crime Stoppers anonymously at 318-388-CASH (2274).
© The Vivid Faces of the Vanished
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