Grieving father says daughter didn’t deserve to be killed

The father of a 19-year-old woman who was shot to death last week on a corner in East St. Louis said the teen had her whole life in front of her and didn’t deserve to be killed.

Lataya Johnson was a happy-go-lucky young lady who liked to be outdoors and was born to do hair, Teddy Johnson said of his daughter.

GUESTBOOK: Offer your condolences to the family of Lataya Johnson

He said she did her hair in different styles every day. “She just loved doing her (hair),” he said. He said the killing of his daughter has shattered his family. Lataya was the youngest of four children. She graduated from East St. Louis Senior High School in May 2014. She left East St. Louis and was living in Florida until the first part of June when she returned home to be with her family.

“She was looking for a job,” Johnson said.

An unknown gunman drove up about 8 p.m. Thursday to the corner of 17th Street and McCausland Avenue where Johnson and an unnamed male were standing, and opened fire, killing Johnson. Police do not believe the victims were targeted, but was hit by a stray bullet and in the wrong place at the wrong time. The male bystander was taken to an area hospital.

“It just doesn’t make sense. My baby didn’t deserve this,” Johnson said. He said his daughter didn’t have any enemies. Johnson said he wants police to locate and arrest whoever is responsible for her death.

Police Detective Lamar Martin said he and agents from the Illinois State Police have been interviewing witnesses. “To maintain public safety, we have to get these bad guys off of the streets. The community has to help us. If anyone has any information about this homicide, we urge them to call us,” Martin said.

Johnson said he and his wife had just gotten off when they learned the news.

“She was in the tub and I was watching television. She got the phone call and came running into the room where I was and said, ‘Our baby just got shot.’ We jumped into some clothes and rushed to the hospital,” he said.

Johnson said he doesn’t want anyone to have to go through a tragedy like this.

“It turns your stomach. It puts a big knot in it. I couldn’t believe it when I heard it. I was just numb. I didn’t believe it until I walked in the room and saw her laying there. This has affected our family very deeply. We have a void in our hearts and it has cut the entire family very deep,” he said.

Johnson urged anyone with any information on this murder to please talk to the police so his family can have closure.

“Put yourselves in our shoes. Please come forward and tell what you know. Our baby didn’t deserve this,” he said.

Johnson also sent a message to those who are carrying and using guns to commit violence and murders: “Please put these guns down. It’s senseless.”

Funeral arrangement are pending, Johnson said, who added the family will be looking for financial assistance to help defray funeral costs.

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 11:34 AM with the headline "Grieving father says daughter didn’t deserve to be killed."