Prosecutors charged the sister of reality TV star Kash with involuntary manslaughter after authorities said she fired the shot that killed her sibling during an Oakland street fight.
Vernika Dunbar, 38, faces a felony involuntary manslaughter count in Alameda County in the death of her sister, Mackayla Paige, the 29-year-old influencer known as Kash.
Oakland police said the shooting happened shortly after 1:30 a.m. Sunday on the 200 block of 14th Street. Officers found Paige suffering from wounds; she was rushed to a hospital and later pronounced dead.
California reporting describes a violent confrontation that spun out of control when Dunbar entered the fight, gun in hand, and the shot meant for someone else struck her own sister.
Oakland police said Dunbar jumped into the clash to shield Kash. Authorities said Dunbar was trying to strike a woman who was fighting with Kash, using a handgun, then fired a shot that hit her sister instead.
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office filed the felony involuntary manslaughter charge against Dunbar after that account of the night.
No verbatim statements from the district attorney or the police department were released in the initial charging reports. The other woman in the fight was not publicly named, and it was not reported whether anyone else was hurt or charged.
Paige, known professionally as Kash, had built a following through reality series including “Real West Coast Baddies,” “Room H8z,” and “Young and Reckless.” She also worked as a model and talked about launching a business and a makeup career.
On the night she was shot, she uploaded Instagram stories of herself out with others. Relatives later said she had been with family and should have been safe.
Cousin Nicky Clayton helped organize a memorial and spoke about the loss.
"I'm in disbelief."
Clayton told KTVU she still could not make sense of the night.
"She was chilling. She was with family. So she supposed to be good. I don't know what transpired, but I know she's supposed to be here."
Clayton also described Paige’s ambition.
"She wanted to be famous so bad. She still had morals, don't get me wrong. She wanted to be a reality star."
A friend who goes by Poodahh, and who has “Spoil Me With Kash” tattooed on her hand, joined other loved ones at the memorial and refused to speak of her friend in the past tense.
"She's not gone. I can't speak to her in the past tense."
Poodahh called Kash a constant push toward better habits and a bigger life, and summed up the hole she left simply: she was a star.
What is known is narrow and grim. A handgun came out in a street fight in Oakland. The woman who brought it into the brawl, police said, was trying to protect her sister. The round hit the person she meant to defend. Prosecutors answered with an involuntary manslaughter charge.
What is not yet public is just as large. Charging papers with full legal language were not detailed in early accounts. Dunbar’s arrest status, bail, and next court date were not listed. The size of the crowd in the fight, any other weapons, and any other injuries also went unreported.
Family and friends are left with memorials and unfinished plans, a business Kash never opened, a makeup lane she never fully claimed, and a fame she chased on camera until a single shot ended the chase.
When a gun enters a fistfight, the people who thought they were protecting each other can become the ones who pay. Lawful order still starts with keeping firearms out of street brawls, and holding the person who fires accountable when someone dies.
