In the early morning hours of November 30, 2018, Xavier Shotwell, a 48-year-old male, found himself in a fatal confrontation in a service station parking lot on Summer Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee. He was sitting in his pickup truck when a black Mercedes pulled in, blocking him. Two armed men emerged from the Mercedes and began to rob another individual. In an attempt to intervene or escape, Shotwell rammed his truck into the suspects' vehicle.
The assailants responded by opening fire, striking and killing him before fleeing the scene.
The investigation that followed moved swiftly. The suspects' Mercedes was discovered a short time later, abandoned and set on fire. Police determined the vehicle had been stolen in a carjacking the previous day. This carjacking was part of a wider, violent crime spree that also included the robbery and shooting of a 55-year-old woman. Within about an hour of Shotwell's murder, officers conducted a traffic stop on a white pickup truck that had been seen with the Mercedes during the robbery attempt. The stop resulted in the apprehension of six individuals connected to the string of violent crimes.
The arrests included three adults and three teenagers. The adults were identified as 21-year-old Carlos Craft, 23-year-old Demetrius Harris, and 19-year-old Marcus Brown. The three juveniles were aged 13, 14, and 15. All six faced serious charges, including first-degree murder and robbery for their roles in the events that led to Xavier Shotwell's death. The case highlighted a disturbing involvement of very young individuals in extremely violent crimes.
In May 2022, a significant development occurred in the legal proceedings. Marcus Brown, one of the adult suspects, pleaded guilty to charges of second-degree murder, especially aggravated robbery, and carjacking. He received a sentence of 30 years in prison without the possibility of parole for his part in the deadly crime spree. At the time of his plea, the cases against the other co-defendants, including one of the individuals who was a minor at the time of the offense, were still awaiting trial.
