William Samuel Rankin, a 39-year-old male from Wichita Falls, Texas, was found dead on October 10, 2016. His body, along with that of David Wayne Phillips Jr., was discovered by Rankin's mother at his house on North Third Street. Both men had multiple gunshot wounds, and investigators found bullet casings and bullets strewn around the living room and kitchen of the house.
Rankin was known to keep two handguns in the house, but police found none at the scene.
Jermar Jamie Fuller, a 23-year-old male, was arrested following a law enforcement chase in Dalhart, Texas, on October 10, 2016. After questioning Fuller and obtaining evidence, Wichita Falls police charged him with capital murder in the deaths of William Samuel Rankin and David Wayne Phillips Jr. Fuller was scheduled to appear in court on March 17, 2017, after he waived arraignment, but that date was rescheduled. Several standard pre-trial motions were filed by Fuller's attorney regarding the prosecution's potential witnesses, any deals the attorneys might have with them, and requesting the state produce the statements by witnesses and Fuller that it might have. The motions were granted by 30th District Judge Robert Brotherton.
Fuller insisted he did not know Rankin or Phillips, but he could not explain a text message from his father on one of the phones that said, "Wedo and Duke had been found dead." Fuller also admitted to police he was driving a car belonging to a Wichita Falls woman to traffic marijuana from Colorado to Wichita Falls. The owner of the car confirmed she had loaned her car to Fuller and said he had come to her house late on October 9 and had a large amount of cash. He told the woman he had gone to a house to rob the person who lived there. He found two people at the house and killed them. Forensic examination showed some of the bullets fired at the scene of the killings came from a gun found in the car when Fuller was arrested.
In March 2020, during Fuller's trial in the 30th District Court, Shantalle Shabrea Vallier, a 29-year-old female, testified that Fuller had told her he shot two men during a robbery gone bad. However, Vallier later recanted her statement, claiming she lied because she was angry with Fuller at the time. Despite her recantation, Fuller was convicted of capital murder of multiple persons and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Vallier pleaded guilty to aggravated perjury in October 2021 and received a 10-year prison sentence, which was suspended in exchange for three years of community supervision.
The tragic deaths of William Samuel Rankin and David Wayne Phillips Jr. highlight the violent consequences of criminal activities and the complexities of the legal system in seeking justice for the victims and their families.
