The evening of March 24, 2005, was a warm spring night in the District. At 9:45 p.m., third-grader Donte Manning was hanging out with his friends on the playground outside his home.
Seconds later, Donte was lying on the ground with a bullet in his head. A gunman standing across the corner of the 2600 block of 13th Street NW had opened fire. Donte was the only one struck by a bullet.
He was taken to Children’s National Medical Center in critical condition. For a month, he fought for his life. On April 26, Donte’s family had him taken off life support.
Police questioned the crowd present at the scene the night of the shooting. Nobody talked. Then, the D.C. police offered a $25,000 reward to anyone willing to give them information that would solve the case. Nobody called.
Determined to crack the case, the investigators added a picture of the innocent victim on the decks of playing cards used by the inmates in the D.C. Jail. Nobody came forward.
Nearly five years later, the police are offering a reward of up to $125,000 and complete anonymity for those who provide information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Donte’s death.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Detective Mitch Credle at 202-724-2481, Sgt. J.C. Young at 202-497-1504 or the Metropolitan Police Department’s Synchronized Operations Command Center at 202-727-9099.
