A Father's Day gathering turned tragic on June 21, 2020, when an argument over a parking space ended in the shooting death of Tyrell Washington Sr., a 40-year-old Black man from Marrero, Louisiana. The incident also left his son critically wounded. The dispute occurred around 10:45 p.m. at a home in the 900 block of North Clark Lane near Westwego, where Washington was visiting his mother and stepfather, Mark Jones.
According to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, Washington and Jones,
then 58, began arguing because Washington had parked in front of a neighbor's house. The verbal disagreement escalated into a physical fight between the two men. During the altercation, Jones allegedly retrieved a firearm and shot his stepson multiple times. He also shot Washington’s 21-year-old son, striking him in the neck. Both men were transported to University Medical Center, where Tyrell Washington Sr. succumbed to his injuries. His son was left in critical condition.
Deputies took Mark Jones into custody at the scene. He was booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder. His bond was set at $750,000.
During a subsequent court hearing to request a bail reduction, conflicting accounts of the shooting emerged. Jones testified that he acted in self-defense, claiming that his step-grandson knocked him down and that both Washington and his son were attacking him. However, Washington's mother and sister told a different story. They accused Jones of shooting Washington and then, moments later, firing a final shot into his head as he lay wounded on the ground. They stated that Washington’s son was shot when he turned back to help his father. A judge denied the request to lower Jones’s bail, citing a criminal history that included domestic violence arrests.
The case concluded in August 2022 when Mark Jones pleaded guilty to a lesser charge for the fatal shooting.
