SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) – The Shreveport police officer killed in a shooting Wednesday night was a mother, former track star, and a rookie officer who had been on the job less than two months.
Chatéri Payne, 22, was preparing to go on shift when she was shot multiple times, according to Shreveport Police Chief Ben Raymond.
The shooting happened just before 8:30 p.m. on Midway Avenue in Shreveport’s Caddo Heights neighborhood. Chief Raymond says police are still searching for the suspect.
Payne graduated from the Shreveport Police and Fire Training Academy in November, fulfilling her dream of becoming a police officer.
“Long days, aching nights, but I decided to stand tall on my dream,” reads a post Payne made on her Facebook page following her graduation. “It is an honor to be able to join such a powerful family with my brothers and sisters in blue. May the journey begin.”
Chief Raymond called Officer Payne’s killing a “senseless, tragic death,” and said they were working tirelessly to find her killer. Raymond said her fellow academy classmates spoke highly of her and joined him at the hospital where Payne was being treated.
Payne, who leaves behind a young child, is a Shreveport native and graduate of Captain Shreve High School where she ran track as a member of the relay team.
