Katelynn Strate, a 17-year-old Louisiana teenager, lost her life after being shot in the head during a suspected road rage attack on Sunday. The shooting occurred on North Hoover Road near Hammond, just north of New Orleans, while she was riding in the passenger seat of a car with her boyfriend.
Road Rage Escalates Into Deadly Confrontation
According to police, the couple was on their way to her boyfriend’s mother’s house when a confrontation with another vehicle turned deadly. A silver Dodge pickup truck, driven by 54-year-old Barry West, allegedly opened fire after the two vehicles engaged in tailgating and brake-checking.
Strate was struck in the head and rushed to the hospital, where doctors performed an emergency C-section. Her baby girl was born two months early, weighing just 3 pounds, 11 ounces, but doctors say the newborn is healthy.
Katelynn Strate Placed on Life Support to Save Baby
Doctors kept Strate on life support to ensure her baby’s survival. Sadly, they later confirmed she would not recover, and her family planned to remove her from life support on Tuesday.
“Her mother is devastated,” said family friend Katie Cancienne. “She just lost her baby, and now she’s a grandmother.”
NEW: Baby delivered by C-section 30 minutes after her mother was shot in the head during a road rage incident in Louisiana.
17-year-old Katelynn Strate was shot in the head north of New Orleans.
Strate was then rushed to the hospital and put on life support so doctors could… pic.twitter.com/tJeIeBbPdN
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 26, 2025
Shooter Arrested and Charged
Barry West claimed he believed the other car had fired first. However, investigators found no weapons in Strate’s vehicle and no evidence supporting his claim.
West has been arrested and charged with attempted second-degree murder.
Friends Remember Katelynn as Loving and Kind
Friends and family described Katelynn as kind, vibrant, and deeply excited about becoming a mother. “They just had a dynamic where you could tell there was genuine love there,” Cancienne said about Katelynn and her boyfriend. “The world’s not going to be the same kind of place without her.”
