On August 11, 2017, at approximately 9:30 p.m., 24-year-old Davion Bankhead was fatally shot in the 800 block of West Park Street in Searcy, Arkansas. Emergency responders arrived to find Bankhead suffering from gunshot wounds; he was transported to a local hospital but was pronounced dead about an hour later. The Searcy Police Department initiated an investigation into the homicide.
Within days, authorities arrested 19-year-old Justice Cunningham, charging him with capital murder in connection with Bankhead's death. Cunningham was taken into custody around 2 a.m. on August 15, 2017, and was held at the White County jail without bond.
In June 2018, a White County jury acquitted Cunningham of all charges after a trial that lasted several days. The jury deliberated for approximately two hours before returning a not guilty verdict. Following the acquittal, authorities arrested a second individual, 19-year-old Edward Driver Jr., charging him with capital murder in connection with Bankhead's death. Driver was held at the White County jail without bond.
As of December 2024, there is no publicly available information indicating that Driver has been tried or convicted in connection with Bankhead's death. The case remains unresolved, and the circumstances surrounding Bankhead's homicide continue to be a subject of public interest and concern in the Searcy community.
