John Jefferson
Inset left: Chante Mark (St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office). Inset right: Raven Francis (GoFundMe). Background: The outside of a bar where Mark and others allegedly had a huge fight on the night Francis was killed (Google Maps).
A New Orleans woman is behind bars after she allegedly laid in wait for a group of women to leave a bar before following them in another car, opening fire, and killing one of her targets, Big Easy police say.
Chante Bertha Mark, 24, stands accused of one count of murder in the second degree, according to Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office records.
The shooting took the life of Raven Francis, 29, and wounded several others. The violence appeared to be payback for a large-scale bar fight earlier the same night, according to law enforcement.
Both the slain and the accused are mothers of four.
During the early morning hours on Sunday, Sept. 1, the New Orleans Police Department responded to a call about a car crash near the corner of Baudin Street and South Solomon Street in the Mid-City neighborhood, according to The Times-Picayune.
At around 2:45 a.m., officers and paramedics arrived to assess the damage — determining the car had flipped after being riddled with bullets and then slamming into a fire hydrant. Four victims were treated for gunshot wounds; they survived. Francis was rushed to a nearby hospital; she succumbed to her wounds later that morning. Later discrepancies arose over the other victims, however, with family members saying most of the survivors were only hurt by the crash.
Mark is believed to be the shooter and was arrested at a hotel on Sept. 4 in Chalmette — a census-designated place located just a few miles due east of the Ninth Ward, in bordering St. Bernard’s Parish, according to New Orleans-based NBC affiliate WDSU. The defendant was transferred to Orleans Parish the next day, jail records show.
In court records obtained by the Time-Picayune, police allege Mark was involved in a knock-down drag-out brawl, with fists, between two large groups of women between 1:56 and 2:02 a.m. on the night in question outside the Shamrock. Surveillance footage cited by law enforcement allegedly shows the defendant scarpering off and running to the far end of the strip mall bar’s parking lot.
Then, in less than a minute, Mark returned with a handgun, using the firearm to attack a melee participant and “striking her five times with force” in the head and shoulder, a police affidavit alleges.
After that, Mark left, witnesses told law enforcement.
But police say she did not go too far.
Instead, the defendant allegedly got inside a white Nissan Altima and waited for the dust to settle. Some 15 minutes later, the idling car began driving “in tandem” with a black SUV that had arrived, police wrote in the affidavit. The two vehicles circled the parking lot twice, then settled on a location to further wait for the victims out nearby.
Mark allegedly called for the drivers of the SUV to come and get her, a witness allegedly told police. Then, when the two vehicles had parked, she switched over into the SUV just before finally following the victims in their own car, the witness allegedly said. And then several shots rang out — a mere two and a half blocks from the Shamrock.
It is unclear if Francis took part in the earlier fight. In a GoFundMe for funeral expenses, her mother says she was not involved.
The online fundraiser reads:
On Sunday, September 1, 2024, unfortunately, my daughter was tragically murdered due to senseless gun violence that had nothing to do with her. Raven was a loving mother of 4, a daughter, a sister, and a friend. She was loving, caring, outgoing, thoughtful and most of all, a fantastic mother. Family meant everything to her. Sadly, she did not have an insurance policy. We are crying out for help from our friends and family to give my daughter a proper burial and put her to rest, also help with the care of her 4 beautiful children. Anything counts, little or small, we are very appreciative for whatever is given. Thank you guys for everything in advance.
Court records obtained by WDSU, New Orleans-based ABC affiliate WGNO and Fox affiliate WVUE show that Mark has been arrested for murder once before. She was suspected of killing her ex-boyfriend in 2023. Prosecutors ultimately decided to drop the charges.
“Our office conducted a thorough review of the entire homicide case file from NOPD,” a spokesperson for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office told WVUE. “While there was some evidence Mark may have been in the same vehicle with the victim on the morning of the murder, there was insufficient evidence that she participated in any way with the shooting.”
On Thursday, Mark’s bond was set at $1 million by Orleans District Court Magistrate Commissioner Jay Daniels.
The defendant may face additional charges of aggravated battery, and police say additional arrests are likely on the horizon.
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