(FOX40.COM) – It’s been three years since the arrest of Wesley Brownlee, 46, the man accused in the so-called “Stockton Serial Killings” that put the city in the national spotlight. Seven people were killed, and one woman survived.
That woman is Natasha LaTour, and she says she is speaking out again for one reason – to make sure no one forgets the victims or the case that left her city shaken.
“This is the spot where I met Jesus,” said LaTour as she was standing near the train tracks near Park Street in Stockton, where she was shot multiple times in April 2021. “It’s definitely a special spot to me. It’s not the place where I was almost murdered. This is the spot where I met Jesus.”
At the time, Natasha was homeless and went out on her bicycle to collect recyclables for money – something she did every day. Just as a train came by, she remembered hearing gravel behind her. She turned to find a masked person pointing a gun at her.
“At first, I didn’t even really feel bullets. It almost felt like having marbles thrown at you,” LaTour recalled. “As quick as he was here, he was gone.”
LaTour says she dragged herself into the street, screaming for help until a driver stopped.
“Somebody said ‘Don’t worry, mija, I’m calling 911,’” she said. “There was one more call that I could make, and I said, ‘God, are you there? It’s me again, I’m dying. And that’s when Jesus came.”
Natasha says she woke up in a hospital days later. Doctors had removed seven bullets from her body.
She didn’t know it then, but her case would help police connect her shooting to a series of killings.
Her survival became a crucial piece of the investigation into Brownlee — the man accused of killing 7 people across Stockton and in Alameda County between 2021 and 2022.
Brownlee was arrested on October 15, 2022, but three years later, his case still hasn’t gone to trial. San Joaquin County Court records show repeated delays, mostly tied to Brownlee’s refusal to cooperate with doctors to determine if he’s mentally competent to stand trial.
“I fought an entire nine-month battle. I went through 11 rounds of chemotherapy, came back into the court…the case had not moved,” said LaTour. “It’s extremely frustrating. There’s been deaths and the families of the victims, you know, they were waiting for justice. And it’s extremely frustrating.”
Nastasha continues to wait for justice, but says she understands the process and expresses gratitude to the prosecutor who handled the case.
Today, LaTour’s life looks very different. She is no longer homeless, has overcome substance addiction, and is in remission after a long battle with cancer. She now works full-time in Downtown Stockton, greeting people with a smile as they arrive for community events.
“If grateful was a person, then here I am,” said LaTour.
She is also engaged and is active on TikTok, using her story to bring awareness to gun violence and inspiring others living through trauma. But she continues to see the toll of gun violence in her city, even recently standing behind police tape after a deadly shooting that claimed two lives just outside her home.
“It should be a wake-up call for bigger things and bigger change,” said LaTour.
As LaTour continues to heal, she carries the memory of the seven victims who did not survive: Juan Vasquez Serrano, Juan Cruz, Salvador Debudey Jr., Jonathan Hernandez Rodriguez, Mervin Harmon, Lawrence Lopez Sr., and Paul Yaw.
Natasha honors the victims with a tattoo on her arm. She describes the “Tree of Life” and has placed a different-colored leaf on the branches representing each of the victims.
“I didn’t ever want to be known as a voice for the victims,” said LaTour. “But I know that in the courtroom, that’s exactly what I am.”
According to the court website, the case against Brownlee is scheduled for further arraignment on Oct. 27 at the San Joaquin County Courthouse.
Josie Heart
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