In the early hours of May 23, 2017, a domestic disturbance call brought West Des Moines Police to an apartment complex at 3405 Woodland Avenue. In the parking lot, they discovered 18-year-old David Hysion Jones of Des Moines suffering from a gunshot wound. The male teenager was quickly taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Investigators determined that Jones had managed to get inside an apartment rented by 21-year-old Gerante Rankin and 20-year-old Tionna Merritt.
An altercation broke out within the apartment, which led to gunshots being fired and Jones being hit. Detectives interviewed several people to understand the relationships between everyone involved and what led to the violent confrontation.
Despite the initial report of a serious injury, David Jones survived the shooting. At the time, no charges were brought against Gerante Rankin or Tionna Merritt in connection with the incident. Years later, in July 2022, Jones himself would be in the news for his involvement in a drive-by shooting in Des Moines' Drake neighborhood, for which he was later sentenced to prison.
