In the early morning hours of May 20, 2021, the life of 35-year-old Marcus Antwon Hammond, a Black/African American man from Ripley, Tennessee, was tragically cut short. Hammond was in the 90 block of Sunset Drive in Ripley when he was fatally shot. Emergency services transported him to a local hospital, but his injuries proved too severe, and he was pronounced dead.
The investigation into Hammond's death was a collaborative effort involving the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the
Ripley Police Department, the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office, and the Lauderdale County Emergency Management Agency. Through their joint investigation, law enforcement officials were able to identify a suspect in the fatal shooting.
Authorities arrested Kenneth Taylor, a resident of Ripley, in connection with Marcus Hammond's death. Taylor was subsequently charged with second-degree murder for his alleged role in the shooting. Following his arrest, he was booked into the Lauderdale County Jail. The motive behind the shooting has not been made public by officials.
