Convicted felon charged in pregnant woman’s killing in DeKalb, police say

A man, previously convicted of manslaughter, is now accused of fatally shooting a pregnant woman through her window as she slept in her DeKalb County home, officials said.

Warrants for Devin Lamar Anthony, 26, were obtained Tuesday on charges of murder, feticide, aggravated assault, criminal damage to property and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Anthony was booked into the DeKalb jail late that day after police said he was located in Riverdale following an early morning shooting that killed Shakiya Pridgen, 23.

Authorities said they were called to an apartment on Peppertree Circle near Flat Shoals Road around 5:15 a.m. Tuesday.

Arrest warrants accuse Anthony of shooting into the woman’s bedroom, where she and her boyfriend were sleeping. Three of the 11 shots fired struck Pridgen, who was 40 weeks pregnant, the warrants say. She and her unborn baby died at a hospital.

Police have not released information on a possible motive.

A GoFundMe created on behalf of Pridgen’s family says she leaves behind a 1-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter.

“We are asking for support for Shakiya’s family during this heartbreaking and devastating time,” the GoFundMe campaign creator, Verdina Scott, wrote. “Shakiya, who was 9 months pregnant, was tragically taken from her loved ones, along with her unborn child.”

It’s the not the first time Anthony has been behind bars, according to his most recent warrants and court records.

In June 2021, he was booked into the Fulton County Jail on charges of felony murder, murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, online records show.

He was indicted on those same charges in September 2021. According to the indictment, he was accused of causing the death of Ronald Barner in March of that year. A few days after Barner’s death, his daughter spoke to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“He was a very loving and compassionate guy,” Andria Mapp said about her father. “His family was extremely important to him and he always showed up when we needed him most.”

Anthony entered a negotiated plea deal in that case in November 2024. A court document shows he was sentenced to 20 years with the first 11 months to be served in confinement for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and voluntary manslaughter. The reason cited in records for the downgrade from murder was Anthony’s status as a first offender. The felony murder charge was vacated and the possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony was not prosecuted, according to online records.

Anthony was in the Fulton jail from June 2021 to June 2022; therefore his 11 months of confinement were credited, and he began to serve his remaining sentence on probation, a sentencing document shows.