By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – One week after two men were killed in Slidell’s Olde Towne district as a result of a shooting that followed a bar fight, top city officials are assuring the public that the incident was an isolated one that is not typical for the community.
“This was such a rare occurrence for Slidell,” Mayor Freddy Drennan said. “No question the public has a right to be concerned, but this could have happened anywhere and we know this is not an indication of what normally happens here.”
Slidell Police Chief Randy Smith said the shooting was the first incident of violent crime in Olde Towne since he has been chief for three-and-a-half years.
“Slidell is still a very safe place; it always has been and always will be,” he said. “This was an unfortunate tragic incident, but it’s not something we usually have around here, and that’s why it has gotten so much attention.”
Slidell Police arrested Covington’s Jamieson Chatman, 22, at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday in Vermilion Parish where he apparently was hiding. Smith said those who assisted Chatman while he was on the run will be prosecuted.
Chatman was booked with two counts of second degree murder, six counts of attempted second degree murder, and also booked as a fugitive since he did not show up in 22nd Judicial District Court in November on charges from a separate shooting arrest in Covington from last January.
Two Slidell men were killed in the shooting rampage that occurred after a group of people from Covington began arguing and fighting with a group of people from Slidell while they were in the bar around 1 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 26.
The fighting began in Shooters Sports Bar, located at 2144 First St. in Slidell’s Olde Towne district. Security in the bar managed to get the two groups out of the bar, but the fighting continued outside with punches thrown, allegedly leading Chatman to pull a gun and start shooting, Smith said.
Errol Scott, 22, and Mark Womack, 23, ended up dying from the confrontation as Scott was pronounced dead at the scene and Womack later died at 11 a.m. at a Slidell hospital. Slidell Police Spokesman Det. Daniel Seuzeneau said initial reports suggested one of the two men was a target of Chatman, but more witness accounts have led police to believe neither men were targets, both dying as innocent bystanders.
Isame Faciane, a friend of Scott’s, said that when fighting began to break out in the bar, Scott and others tried to leave the scene.
“We were inside the bar and some people starting fighting, so Ro (Scott’s nickname) wanted to leave,” Faciane said. “Everyone went outside and Ro was behind me, but then the guys starting fighting and people were watching.
“In Slidell, people don’t really shoot, so we weren’t worried about that. But then we heard the gunshots and by the time we got to our car, they said Ro was down,” he added. “I thought he (the shooter) was shooting in the air, but he shot in the direction of the people he was fighting.”
Scott and Womack were two of eight people who were hit in the shooting spree, with Johnathan Johnson, 23, along with Janae Benton, 20, both still hospitalized but expected to recover from their injuries. Also injured in the shooting but all released from the hospital were Brandon Dolliole, 23, Juan Redmond, 26, Keri Warner, 23, and Quinterol Jackson, 25.
The incident received massive regional media coverage due in part to happening right after Christmas night, with heavy social media responses from some who used it to question the safety in Slidell, partly due to the murder being the fifth in Slidell this year—the highest number of killings in Slidell ever for one year. Slidell had reported only six total murders in the past 10 years.
However, Smith, along with former Slidell Police Chief Drennan, are assuring the community that the shooting was an isolated case that could happen in any town.
“This was just a barroom brawl that got out of control and it is very isolated for our city,” Smith said.
Drennan added “we seldom ever have anything of this magnitude in Slidell and it’s unfortunate that it happened. But it could have happened anywhere and we won’t allow this to stop any of the work we’re doing to focus on Olde Towne as the historic heart of our city, and continue the revitalization efforts.”
Chatman’s name was not initially made public as the prime suspect in the case, but on Friday, Smith released his name and photo to the public, assisted by a $7,500 reward offer from Crimestoppers. Smith said they were immediately flooded with tips about where to find Chatman. Early on Saturday morning, members of the Slidell Police Department, U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force and the Louisiana State Police arrested Chatman at a residence in Vermilion Parish without incident.
The St. Tammany Sheriff’s Office and Covington Police Department also provided assistance in the case throughout the investigation, Smith said.