In the late hours of a warm Saturday evening in Macon, Georgia, the lively atmosphere of a large block party, known as the 'Death Valley' party, was shattered by gunfire. On June 1, 2019, 22-year-old Deroderick Ridley, an African American male, was fatally shot at the gathering near the corner of Hillcrest Road and Log Cabin Drive. Another man, Marquis Simmons, was also wounded in the incident but survived.
The party, which had drawn a large crowd, spilled into a parking lot where an altercation reportedly began. Tensions flared when an attendee asked the driver of a black Dodge Charger to stop doing burnouts. A brief physical confrontation ensued. Shortly after, a masked gunman emerged from the passenger side of a vehicle and opened fire into the crowd, striking Ridley and Simmons. The scene was described as chaotic, with investigators later recovering around 200 shell casings, indicating the sheer volume of gunfire.
The Bibb County Sheriff's Office launched an investigation that was aided by a tip to Macon Regional Crimestoppers. This crucial information led to the identification and subsequent arrest of two suspects. The first, 24-year-old Brandon Matthew Tyler, was taken into custody on June 17, 2019, at a local apartment complex. He was charged with murder.
Ten days later, on June 27, 2019, the second suspect, 22-year-old Kenyatta Sharroid Jones Jr., was apprehended by Bibb County Sheriff's Deputies and the U.S. Marshals South East Regional Task Force. Jones was arrested at a store near the corner of Mumford Road and Napier Avenue and faced charges of murder. He also had outstanding warrants for burglary and a probation violation from an unrelated case.
Brandon Tyler stood trial for his role in the shooting. After a week-long trial, a jury convicted him of malice murder, felony murder, and two counts of aggravated assault. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 20 years. He will be eligible for parole on the murder charges after serving 30 years. The legal proceedings for Kenyatta Sharroid Jones Jr. also moved forward, with him facing the serious charge of murder in connection with the death of Deroderick Ridley.
