A popular New Orleans trumpeter and educator was fatally shot while he was trying to protect his daughter and grandson in his home. According to PEOPLE, the suspected gunman, identified as Edmond Ramee Sr., was on Monday taken into custody in connection with the shooting death of 60-year-old Brian Murray. He faces a count of second-degree murder.
Prior to the fatal shooting, Murray had gone to a home in Gretna on Monday to pick up his daughter and grandson following an argument his daughter allegedly had with the father of her son, Ramee Sr.
Murray reportedly took this daughter and grandson to his Little Woods residence. But Ramee Sr. reportedly showed up at the home and allegedly shattered the glass of a screen door. The suspected gunman’s 1-year-old son was seated around the area at the time. Ramee Sr. then grabbed the minor and left the home.
He, however, allegedly came back to the home while still carrying his son and opened fire. Murray was fatally struck, the affidavit stated. An unnamed witness who was in the home at the time of the shooting found refuge in a closet and later got out of danger through a window. The witness then called 911 to report the incident.
And though Ramee Sr. fled the scene in the aftermath of the incident, he surrendered to authorities later on Monday.
Murray was reportedly a popular trumpeter and educator in New Orleans. He was a teacher at Jefferson Parish Public Schools and Ellis Marsalis School of Music, his website stated, according to PEOPLE. He also held a bachelor’s degree in music performance from Xavier University as well as a master’s degree in jazz studies from the University of New Orleans.
A friend and colleague of Murray, Dr. Daryl Dickerson, described the deceased father as “a great guy” who was also “great with kids.” “He could relate with kids,” he added.
Dickerson also said Murray had a foundation that gathered instruments for needy children. “He would be the guy who would get instruments from people and call me and say, do you need a trumpet, or a flute,” he recalled. “We would turn around and give it to a student. It was a pipe line of keeping music going in New Orleans.”
“He was a kind-hearted person and he would do whatever you asked him to do,” Dickerson continued. “That is what hurts the most. Some kids won’t get to experience what he was offering. He was the kind of person, his knowledge, his wisdom, his experience, he would give it all to you so you would understand what is going on.”
“It is going to be a great loss to his students,” he said. “This is something you can’t replicate what he brought to the table and the type of person he was.”
Dickerson also added he was yet to come to terms with his friend’s killing. “I am still trying to figure out why this guy,” he said.
“The innocent always seem to get hurt the most. He was not a confrontational type of person. I think America has to take a look in the mirror and ask themselves about the guns we have on the streets and how we are getting younger and younger people using these guns and ruining people’s lives. We lost a bright educator. To lose someone like this who gave so much. It hurts. We just lost one of the captains of the ship.”
