Former nurse performed CPR on New Orleans second line shooting victim who later died

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - A former nurse was one of the first to respond and render aid to a victim who later died after one of two shootings near a St. Roch second line parade Sunday (Nov. 18).

The victim was a Marrero man, struck in a triple shooting on the Almonaster Bridge, just 45 minutes after a mass shooting had injured 10 people on the parade route.

New Orleans police are searching for the perpetrators of the shootings, and did not go so far as to connect the two incidents, which have drawn condemnation from state and local officials. The shootings took place during the Nine Times Social Aid and Pleasure Club second line .

During the second shooting, former nurse Chenise Hollins said she had called to check on her family after she heard about the first. While on the Almonaster Bridge, she said she noticed a crowd grouped to her left.

"I was just asking, 'What's happening?' They were like, 'Oh, there's some bodies over there.' I was like, 'Oh, is somebody living? Breathing? Do they need help?'" she said.

"Somebody said, 'Barely.' And when I heard 'barely,' I was like, 'OK, then I have a chance to help. And I just took off running. I didn't even think about it, I just ran."

Hollins said that when she arrived, a physician already was rendering aid to one of the victims who was still breathing.

"I just started doing compressions, and we kind of alternated. Between each round, we alternated," she said. "It wasn't enough. It just wasn't enough."

She later learned the victim she had tried to save was 21-year-old Rasean Carter. Carter was gunned down alongside his family member, 19-year-old Malachi Jackson.

A third victim shot at the bridge scene survived.

"I have two daughters, and I would hope that somebody would help them if they were ever in need," Hollins said. "Not even anything as significant as that. But if my kids needed help, I would hope that someone would help them.

"Being a healthcare professional, I've had a lot of deaths and I've seen a lot. Yesterday was the first I've ever seen anything like that, outside of a medical setting."

No arrests have been made in connection to the shootings, and officials are asking for the public's help to solve the cases.

NOPD Supt. Anne Kirkpatrick said the department had a beefed-up police presence at the second line, due to prior violence at similar events. The NOPD said it has not yet determined if the two shootings were connected.

Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in each of the shooting cases. Tipsters can remain anonymous when calling (504) 822-1111.

Hollins said she hopes the community will rally around the families of the victims and help them to find closure by turning in the suspects.

"Everyone has this mentality like, 'I'm going to mind my business.' And it's like, your neighbor is your business," she said. "People that live in your community is your business."