On the night of April 17, 2019, a dispute in a Texarkana, Arkansas apartment complex parking lot tragically cut short the life of 18-year-old Jaqualyn Paxton. The young woman, a recent graduate of Arkansas High School and a crew member at McDonald's, was with a group of friends helping a couple move into the Village Park South Apartments on East Street.
An argument escalated into a violent confrontation that would end her life.
The incident began when Markelle Demetrice Davis, then 19 years old, became angered by a female friend who was teasing him and had struck his car with her phone charger. In response, Davis pistol-whipped the woman. Seeing this, Jaqualyn, who was standing behind Davis, pulled his long hair. Davis then threatened to shoot both women before turning and firing the pistol, striking Jaqualyn in the left cheek. Her friends rushed her to a local hospital, but she succumbed to her injuries.
Law enforcement officers and Miller County Deputies located and arrested Markelle Davis shortly after he fled the scene. He was subsequently charged with first-degree murder. In January 2020, a Miller County jury found Davis, then 20, guilty. He was sentenced to a total of 48 years in prison, receiving 33 years for first-degree murder and an additional 15 years for the use of a firearm, with the sentences to be served consecutively.
