Dayton double homicide: ‘You’re taking parents away from these kids’

One man was arrested on a count of murder in connection with Saturday’s double homicide at a Dayton after-hours jazz club, police announced Monday.

The man was arrested in Moraine and booked into the Montgomery County Jail. The suspect’s name was not immediately available.

A Dayton police spokeswoman said the arrest was related to the shooting death of a couple who had a newborn baby. The incident was the area’s second double homicide in less than a week.

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Trotwood police haven’t provided updated information about any possible suspects or if they have apprehended anyone related to the shootings. Neither Dayton nor Trotwood police have indicated if the double homicides are related.

Darion Harris, 29, and Ashley James, 28, both of Dayton, were shot in a blue pickup truck outside Rick’s Jazz Lab, an after-hours jazz spot early Saturday morning on Lakeview Avenue in Dayton.

Harris, who died of multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, died at the scene, according to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office. James was pronounced at an area hospital and died of a gunshot wound of the back.

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The couple welcomed a baby boy about two months ago, according to family members.

Tumeka James, Ashley’s sister, told this news organization her sister will be remembered as a good mother who cared about others. Ashley also has an 11-year-old daughter.

“To get a call about losing our baby sister … I am just stunned right now still,” Tumeka said. “And with a lot of this violence, you’re taking parents away from these kids. And as they get older, you have to tell them why they don’t have their parents.”

The location at 1832 Lakeview has had reports of gunshots. On March 3, a complaint was made to Dayton police that a bullet was fired through the windshield of a car.

Dayton police reports from 2017 indicate cars have been broken into there and cash and weapons have been stolen along with a vehicle that was taken.

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Tumeka James said both victims’ families are looking for answers, and they don’t know why somebody would want to harm their loved ones.

Harris had a criminal history, including being sentenced to 18 months in prison for robbery and attempted robbery. He had an active misdemeanor domestic violence charge brought by Trotwood police.

Harris also had a 2009 charge of trafficking in counterfeit controlled substances for which he got probation and 2016 charges for felonious assault and having weapons under disability in which he was not indicted.

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Tumeka James said there will be a balloon launch and funeral expenses fundraiser at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Ivory Coast 2 at 5350 W. Third St.

Last Wednesday, Antonio F. Collins, 25, and Elmer Rucker, 23, both of Dayton, were shot multiple times while in a blue car in the parking lot of the Pinewood Gardens apartment complex in Trotwood.

Collins died at the scene while Rucker was pronounced at an area hospital. Both died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to the county coroner’s office.

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