In the early morning hours of July 5, 2014, a tragedy unfolded on Princeton Street in Hempstead, New York, that cut short the life of 26-year-old Shawn Boone. Boone, a male resident of Hempstead, was sitting in his car with his girlfriend at approximately 1:20 a.m. when the encounter turned fatal. He was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound.
The incident, which occurred over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, prompted an investigation by the Nassau County Police Homicide Squad who sought the public's help in finding the person responsible for this violent act.
The investigation led police to Tayquan Clark, a man from the nearby community of Roosevelt. Evidence gathered by investigators played a crucial role in piecing together the events of that night. Clark's fingerprints were discovered on the exterior of the driver-side door of Boone's vehicle. Furthermore, surveillance video captured a man approaching the car, getting inside, and then fleeing the scene. A significant breakthrough came when a handgun, a Smith & Wesson snub-nose revolver reported stolen in 1971, was linked to Clark after a separate incident on July 26. Ballistic testing confirmed that this was the weapon used to kill Shawn Boone. Following the shooting, Clark had attempted to destroy evidence by wiping down the inside of the vehicle.
In December 2014, a grand jury indicted Tayquan Clark on multiple charges, including murder. After a trial, a jury found Clark, who was 24 at the time of the conviction, guilty of second-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree robbery, and four counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. In January 2017, Tayquan Clark was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison for the murder of Shawn Boone. The Nassau County District Attorney stated that the sentence would ensure Clark pays a heavy price for his despicable crime, bringing a measure of justice to Shawn Boone's family and making the community safer.
