Bay St. Louis man gets prison, admits he was on drugs during fatal shooting in woods

A man who had admitted he was high on drugs when he shot and killed Jeremy Fountain in 2016 was sentenced to 40 years in prison on Monday, the district attorney said in a news release.

Drew Daniel Bourgeois, 33, of Bay St. Louis, pleaded guilty to one count of second degree murder. He will serve 30 years in prison, 10 suspended and five years of post-release supervision.

On July 11, 2016, investigators found the body of Jeremy Fountain — who had been missing since July 1, 2016 — in the woods near Chesapeake Street in Shoreline Park.

“The remains from Shoreline Park were positively identified as Jeremy Fountain through DNA comparison with his mother. An autopsy revealed that Fountain suffered a gunshot wound to the head,” Assistant District Attorney Chris Daniel said the release.

Investigators identified Drew Bourgeois as a suspect, and during an interview with police, another suspect identified Bourgeois as having shot Fountain and asked the other suspect to help clean up the crime scene.

According to a press release from the District Attorney’s office, during the plea hearing Bourgeois said, “we went into the woods to shoot guns. I pointed the gun at him and shot him. I didn’t mean to kill him. I was high on drugs. I want to apologize to the family. I am really sorry.”

Bourgeois’ sentence will run concurrent with a Louisiana sentence he is already serving.

In 2019, Bourgeois was also accused of the 2016 murder of Matthew Spooner in New Orleans. Bourgeois was charged with obstructing justice in a homicide investigation and second-degree murder. He could face life in prison if convicted.

According to investigators, Fountain and Spooner knew each other as well as Bourgeois. They were both 35 years old and were each fatally shot in the head. Investigators believe the killings may have occurred on the same day.