Johnathan Robinson is behind bars for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Rannita Williams, also known as “NuNu,” which was captured on Facebook Live at her home in Shreveport, Louisiana.
On the morning of April 12, 2018, Robinson, then 36, broke into Williams’ home, located in the 1300 block of Natalie Street, by kicking in the front door.
He then held her hostage.
The victim’s brother was also in the home, but he was able to escape and call 911 for help, according to the Shreveport Times.
By 10:48 a.m., there were at least 40 Shreveport police officers and emergency vehicles surrounding the house in the Caddo Heights neighborhood.
Robinson fired 30 rounds at the officers from inside the home. One of the bullets struck Officer Robert Entrekin in the forearm.
After nearly 80 minutes, he surrendered.
When officers searched the home, they found Williams, a mother of three, suffering from several gunshot wounds.
She was transported to the University Health Hospital, where she died shortly after arriving.
Shreveport police Sgt. Jeff Brown testified that Williams had been shot in the knee, torso, and upper body.
He added that officers had discovered her blood in the living room area as well as her bedroom, KSLA News 12 reported.
During a 37-minute interview with detectives at the precinct, Johnathan Robinson confessed to fatally shooting Rannita Williams, who worked as a hairstylist and interior designer.
When he ascertained that he was being charged with second-degree murder, Robinson said he should be charged with first-degree murder.
He said, “I knew what I was doing. I was in my right mind. I knew I was going to kill her.”
When asked why he was shooting at the police, he said, “I wanted to die.” He also stated that he surrendered because he didn’t have any more bullets and his girlfriend told him to do so.
Robinson was arrested and booked into the Caddo Correctional Center, where he was held on a $2,535,000 bond.
He was charged with one count of second-degree murder, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of simple criminal damage to property, and seven counts of attempted first-degree murder.
Shreveport police learned through an investigation that the shooting of Rannita Williams was captured on Facebook Live.
KTBS reported that after Robinson broke into her home, he forced her to get on Facebook Live and apologize to his new girlfriend, who lived in Houston, Texas.
Relatives stated that two years before the murder, Rannita Williams and Johnathan Robinson had dated on and off for five years, as reported by The Baltimore Sun.
In a three-minute video, Robinson can be heard saying, “It’s already done. Now apologize, b****.”
Williams appeared on the screen and said: “Hey, y’all. This NuNu. I Apologize for going Live on Rika. I ain’t have no business doing all that. My page been blocked; so, that’s why I’m going Live.”
“Yes, I know I was wrong. I ain’t have no business going off like that, but—.”
Before Williams could finish her statement, Robinson interjected. While pacing back and forth behind her, he said: “Everybody wanna be famous. Imma make you famous.”
“Yes, I am sorry y’all,” Williams continued. “This NuNu. I’m blocked off my page. So, I had to go on Live on [unintelligible] phone. I ain’t have no intentions of going Live like that.”
“I apologize for everybody.”
Williams proceeded to confabulate with someone on the phone who she referred to as “Aunt Lola.” Moments later, Robinson said: “You really think I’m worried about the police right now, huh? You think I’m worried about the police right?”
Williams shook her head no.
“I’m telling you, [expletive],” he exclaimed. “I don’t give a [expletive] about no [expletive] police, ya heard me?”
She continued her conversation with her aunt on the phone, but Robinson continued to pace back and forth behind her, while saying: “[expletive] wanna be famous. I’mma make a [expletive] famous… everybody wanna be famous, let’s be famous today.”
“I keep telling you I’ll get on these [expletive] level.”
He then opened the front door and noticed the police were outside. That’s when he purportedly fired six shots at them.
When the shots stopped, Williams dropped the camera on the floor and screamed, “Stop, Johnathan! Stop, Johnathan!”
The camera captured Robinson shooting a semi-automatic rifle three more times, but this time, it was in Williams’ direction. He shot a fourth time, but it was out of the view of the camera.
Before turning the camera off, he said: “Now [expletive], game over! Game over, [expletive].”
Several days after the Facebook Live shooting of Rannita Williams, family and friends of the victim gathered outside her home for a candlelight vigil. They said a prayer and shared memories of her.
Her mother said: “I could say one thing about my baby: she’s a living legacy. She left me broken, torn, and hard.”
“My heart is ripped apart, and I could tell anybody out here, if you got somebody and you mad at them family member and all, you grab them, and you love them cause you don’t know when it’s going to be your last time seeing that person.”
Then, balloons were released.
On the afternoon of April 21, 2009, Rannita Williams’ funeral was held at the Praise Temple Full Gospel Baptist Cathedral in the 4700 block of Greenwood Road in Shreveport, Louisiana.
She was laid to rest at Hawkins Cemetery in Haughton, Louisiana.
On Jan. 24, 2019, Robinson pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, after taking a plea deal that would avoid the death penalty.
He also apologized for the fatal shooting of his ex-girlfriend. He said he knows he “hurt a lot of people, myself. I hope one day you forgive me for what I did.”
Fox Carolina reported that while he was incarcerated, Robinson sent an apology letter to the victim’s mother, who told him: “I forgave you already.”
Robinson was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility.