In a chilling tale of youthful promise extinguished by the grim realities of gang violence, actress Tara Correa-McMullen, a rising star in Hollywood, met a tragic end at the tender age of 16. On October 21, 2005, Tara was fatally shot five times in the torso outside an apartment building in Inglewood, California, by 22-year-old gang member Damien Watts.
Tara Correa-McMullen had just begun to make her mark in the entertainment industry, with notable appearances alongside Martin Lawrence and Amy Brenneman in movies and television. She gained recognition for her role in Steve Carr’s “Rebound” (2005) and secured a recurring role in the CBS TV series “Judging Amy.”
The fateful incident that took Tara’s life was the result of her association with a gang member who was ten years her senior, shedding light on the dangers of being drawn into a world of violence and crime. On that ill-fated day, Tara was hanging out with friends in front of an apartment on East Plymouth Street when the gang-related shooting occurred.
Tara Correa-McMullen was transported to a hospital but succumbed to her injuries three hours later, becoming another tragic statistic of gang violence in the area. Two other men were also shot during the incident but survived their injuries.
Initially, the motive behind the shooting puzzled Inglewood police, who described it as a “walk-up gang-related shooting.” Sergeant Steve Overly remarked that while Tara was not a gang member herself, she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Tara’s life had been marked by struggles and challenges. She had grown up on the East Coast before relocating to Northern California with her sister Abigail and her mother, Mary Devra Correa. It was in Venice, California, where Tara attended Venice High School and her mother found work at a casting agency.
Tragically, Tara’s life took a dark turn when she began dating a gang member who was a decade older than her and had a criminal record. Her friend from school, Maurice Tipton, revealed the harrowing experiences Tara had endured in the relationship, including threats and isolation.
Maurice Tipton recounted, “She told me that he had locked her in the room, and he threatened to blow her brains out if she left. I looked into her eyes, and I didn’t see the beautiful, blue eyes that I usually see. I just saw darkness. It was like she wasn’t even there anymore.”
The investigation into Tara Correa-McMullen’s tragic death ultimately led to the conviction of the shooter, Damien Watts, and another gang member involved in the violence. The incident served as a stark reminder of the dangers lurking in the shadows of fame and the devastating consequences of entanglement with the wrong crowd.
As Investigation Discovery’s show “Death by Fame” recently aired an episode titled “A Rising Star Shot Down” on January 22, 2024, the memory of Tara Correa-McMullen continues to serve as a cautionary tale for young talents navigating the precarious path of stardom.
