After just over 30 minutes of deliberation a St. Landry Parish jury reached a verdict convicting Derrick T. Hills of the 2nd Degree Murder of his wife, Rachelle Arceneaux. On June 23, 2021, Arceneaux was shot multiple times with an AK-47 type assault-rifle in her own home on Prudhomme Lane in Opelousas.
District Attorney Chad Pitre and Assistant D.A. Alisa Gothreaux prosecuted the case and presented video evidence of Hills leaving the residence with the murder weapon in his hand and fleeing in the victim’s truck. Hills fled to Alexandria after the shooting and turned himself in to Rapides Parish authorities several hours after the shooting. The defendant is set for sentencing before District Judge Gerard Caswell on July 13, 2023. The sentence carries mandatory life in prison without probation, parole, or suspension of sentence. This is the eighth major jury trial successfully prosecuted in St. Landry Parish this year.
“Our entire team did an exceptional job and should be congratulated. We presented sufficient evidence to the jury and won justice for the kids and grandkids of Rachelle,” Pitre said.
Pitre indicated that the victim’s daughter and grandson were in the home when the killing took place which caused an emotional trial.
