According to a prosecutor, the motive behind the murder of a 17-year-old girl was to conceal another crime. However, despite the attempt to hide the evidence, the man responsible for the heinous act has been convicted.
In September 2017, Dennetta Franks lost her life when she was shot in the face. She had unfortunately fallen in with the wrong crowd, leading to this tragic outcome.
According to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, it is crucial to surround yourself with individuals who make ethical choices. She emphasizes that one wrong decision can have fatal consequences.
During an interview with Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Mark Winne, Deputy District Attorney Vincent Faucette revealed that Franks was going through a tough time in her life after leaving a group home in Columbus. According to Faucette, Franks was part of a group of young individuals who were involved in an attempted armed robbery of a food delivery man, which ultimately failed.
Both the food delivery man and a potential robber sustained injuries during the incident.
Upon learning that the plan was to entice the delivery man into the robbery, Franks didn’t waste any time in taking action. She immediately sent messages to her family and made a decision to surrender herself.
“Is she experiencing a crisis of conscience?” Winne inquired.
According to Faucette, the evidence suggests that they do indeed believe so.
Eddie Byrd, one of the robbers, discovered her intention to approach the police.
According to the Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, the individuals were fearful that she would report their activities.
Despite his claims of innocence, Byrd was ultimately found guilty of attempted robbery and received a harsh sentence of 20 years. In a related case, another individual involved in the DeKalb County robbery received a 17-year sentence and was also charged with murder, though later acquitted of that charge.
Byrd has been convicted of murder and is currently facing a sentence of life without parole plus five years.
According to Michael, Franks’ brother, he was serving in the military when she was killed.
“He expressed his devastation, saying ‘I mean, I was crushed. You know, I was boo-hoo crying like a baby, man. It broke me’.”
According to Franks, he fondly recalls his sister’s face beaming with a smile.
Franks reminisced about the good times he shared with the person, saying, “She had a great sense of humor and always managed to make me laugh. We shared many moments filled with laughter and jokes.”
Franks attributed his ability to cope with his sister’s passing to his strong faith in God.
Franks expressed that despite the pain caused by his loved one’s passing and the circumstances surrounding it, he found solace in his faith. He shared that he believed he could become stronger through prayer, and continues to pray every day as a means of coping with his loss.
In Faucette’s opinion, the reason why the co-defendant was acquitted is due to the testimony that revealed Byrd was the one who fired the initial shot, which hit the victim’s face. Additionally, a text message retrieved from the co-defendant’s phone after the robbery indicated his desire to have Dennetta live with him and his family.
According to Faucette, Byrd’s defense centered around his absence from the scene of the crime, but the jury was not convinced and rejected it. Currently, a motion for a new trial has been filed on behalf of Byrd.
