Derrick D. Spearman was a 44-year-old Black man who was born in Houston, Texas, on November 30, 1978. He was married, had three children and two brothers, and was loved by many friends and family who would miss him dearly.
On the night of April 3, 2023, Derrick was found with gunshot wounds in Longview, Texas, near the intersection of Mobberly Avenue and Young Street.
Emergency responders transported him to a local hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries.
The day after the shooting, on April 4, 2023, Longview police arrested two suspects in connection with Derrick’s death: 21-year-old Artrell Taylor and 23-year-old Shannon Tre’Mon Marshall. Marshall was released from the Gregg County Jail a few days later on April 7, 2023, while Taylor remained incarcerated until August 2, 2024.
The case proceeded to the court of Judge Alfonso Charles. During a pretrial hearing on August 21, 2024, both Taylor and Marshall initially rejected a plea deal offered by the state and opted to go to trial. However, the following week, both men changed their minds and accepted a plea agreement. On Monday, August 26, 2024, they pleaded guilty. Taylor’s plea was for a charge of manslaughter, and Marshall’s was for a charge of murder. Both men were sentenced to 10 years of probation, resolving the case as of August 2024.
