Family seeks closure in unsolved killing
Nearly five months after Brittany Guidry was killed in broad daylight outside a southeast Houston convenience store, the victim’s family pleaded on Wednesday for information that could crack the unsolved case.
The 25-year-old victim’s friends and family wiped away tears and stood shoulder-toshoulder beneath a photo of the slain woman at a news conference held by Crime Stoppers of Houston. Some wore face masks customized with Guidry's photo.
Guidry, a giving, caring and hardworking person loved by many, aspired to serve in the military, said her mother, Juana Johnson.
“Unfortunately, she didn’t get a chance,” Johnson said. “Somebody else’s child killed my child. She didn't make it to the Army or the Air Force.”
Investigators are searching for the killer, but authorities say they need public assistance. Crime Stoppers is offering up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and/or charging of a suspect or suspects, said Andy Kahan, director of victim services at the agency.
“We’re asking for the public’s help,” Kahan said. “The public is our eyes and ears out there. We know somebody knows what happened that afternoon in broad daylight to Brittany, who was just sitting in her car in front of a convenience store. It's time somebody steps up to the plate and does the right thing.”
Johnson, along with Guidry’s uncle and cousin, begged people to come forward with information and urged the gunman to turn himself in. Other family members stood at the news conference in solidarity.
“Give this family closure, give us closure,” said Ronald Love, the victim's uncle.
Guidry was shot and killed around noon April 22 when she was sitting in the driver's seat of her car parked outside a convenience store in the 7400 block of Calhoun Road, said Houston police Detective D. Crowder. There was no apparent fight or struggle, witnesses told police, before a man reached into the vehicle and fired several shots. Bullets struck Guidry and her partner, who survived.
Multiple witnesses were at the scene of the small strip mall, where other businesses and an apartment complex draw foot traffic, Crowder said. Investigators interviewed several people immediately after the shooting, but the evidence was not sufficient to solve the case, he said.
“There were plenty of people out and about that would have heard or seen something,” Crowder said.
The suspect was wearing a red bandana, meaning he could be a gang member, the detective said.
“I don't know how that factors into this incident, but it’s something we’re looking into,” he said.
Johnson described the killing as a “cold-blooded murder.”
“To live with yourself each and every day, I don't see how you do it,” Johnson said about the killer. “I hope you turn yourself in.”
Anyone with information in the case can call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS or submit a tip via crime-stoppers.org.