A 34-year-old Aurora man has been convicted in a deadly apartment shooting that left a mother of four dead and four children caught in the chaos.
An Adams County jury on Friday found Kelynn Lewis guilty of second-degree murder in the killing of 35-year-old Vatrice Lashae Little, along with attempted second-degree murder, tampering with a witness and four counts of child abuse. Jurors signed off on a stack of guilty findings after a trial that revisited a violent February 2024 night inside an Aurora apartment where, prosecutors said, Lewis opened fire while children were present.
Over several days of testimony, prosecutors painted the shooting as an intentional attack in a home crowded with kids, while the defense pushed back on Lewis’s alleged motive and intent. A jury verdict sheet listed the multiple convictions. For more details on the trial testimony and the full verdict form, see The Denver Post.
Shooting And Arrest
According to the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, the case began after a Feb. 9, 2024, shooting in the 1700 block of Paris Street in Aurora. Prosecutors filed charges later that month, initially accusing Lewis of first-degree murder and attempted murder, along with four counts of child abuse, under case number 2024CR000459. Those filings came in a detailed charging announcement from the office.
Victim And Witness Accounts
Early coverage of the shooting described a terrifying scene inside the apartment. One woman told reporters she survived by “playing dead” as shots rang out, and said Little moved in front of the gunman and was hit multiple times. Police and relatives said four children were in the unit during the gunfire but were not physically injured. Family members later identified Little as a mother of four and condemned the violence that ended her life. Those firsthand accounts and scene details were documented by CBS Colorado…