We have got to stop! This young man was somebody!
Alexandria, LA (6/16/2023) – When will we stop destroying our own? This young man had turned his life around despite so many childhood tragedies. He had gone through Louisiana Youth Challenge Program (YCP) to improve his circumstances.
He had become a father and family man with a direction in life. All to be cut short by someone, for all intents and purposes, was a friend.
We have to become better at conflict resolution. We have to learn we can lose an argument or a fight and not have to seek revenge. Not sure of the details of the why in this case, but the result is all too familiar.
My brother wasn’t looking for any trouble he had completely did a 360 with his life. He kept a job and took care of his family. He was really becoming a great man.
Airman First Class Lateacia Dwellingham
His life was taken without reason.
Now a family struggles to cope. But they are doing a fantastic job of keeping his name alive and letting it be known he was not in the streets. He was changed; he was different. But unfortunately, his life has tragically ended.
Marcus Dewayne Atkins Jr. was born on December 28, 2000. Marcus’s mother, Felicia Marie Dwellingham, passed away in 2013 due to a brain aneurysm. He and his siblings were separated and placed in separate foster homes. Shelly and Elisha Pullins later adopted Marcus. He went on to complete YCP and obtain his HiSET (GED).
Marcus also had a family of his own. Iyana Harrell was his soon-to-be wife and mother of his son Ireland Harrell. He was a great father and was very loving. He had got extremely close to Iyana’s family, which became his family.
Marcus was shot and killed on June 13, 2023. The suspect was identified as George Carter, 19, of Alexandria, Louisiana. Carter was charged with second-degree murder and parole violation; his bond was set at $1,000,000.
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A law enforcement-related agency has provided this information as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal “All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.” or arrested and charged with a crime have not been convicted of any criminal offense. They are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
