A Shreveport man who fired a sawed-off shotgun at an SUV and gravely injured a 2-year-old was convicted of second-degree cruelty to a juvenile Friday, April 11, 2025 in Caddo District Court.
Robert Mack Whitaker, 24, was unanimously found guilty as charged by the jury in District Judge Ramona Emanuel’s court after less than an hour of deliberation.
The incident occurred on May 16, 2020, on Wagner Street. Whitaker armed himself with a sawed-off shotgun and fired four times into a Nissan SUV. The shots injured a 2-year-old child seated in the rear passenger area. The child was hit by shotgun pellets and shattered glass after Whitaker fired through the closed windows of the vehicle.
The state’s 10 witnesses included the child victim, his mother and grandmother, an orthopedic surgeon, a firearms expert and law enforcement personnel.
Whitaker will return to court for sentencing April 23, 2025. He faces 15 and up to 40 years in prison due to a firearm enhancement filing, which if granted mandates a minimum of 15 years to be served without the possibility of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.
Whitaker was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Ron Christopher Stamps and Britney A. Green. Dave Knadler and Royal Alexander defended Whitaker.
The case was docket No. 392006.
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