In the winter of 2020, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the life of 41-year-old Marcus Dwayne Hardin was tragically cut short. On January 28th, police responded to a call of a shooting at the Haven at Valley Hi apartments on Teal Court. Inside, they found Marcus Hardin, a Black/African American male, deceased from gunshot wounds. The incident that unfolded was the tragic culmination of a domestic dispute.
The person who called the police was his 30-year-old girlfriend, Erica Arellano.
An argument between the couple had escalated, leading to a violent confrontation. According to Arellano’s account to the police, the argument was about their relationship. She stated that as she was trying to leave the apartment to pick up her child from school, Hardin prevented her from leaving by holding the door closed.
Arellano claimed that Hardin then attacked her, hitting her over the head with a shaker bottle and his fists, causing her to fall. She told investigators that she crawled away with her gun in her hand. Near the living room couch, she stood up and fired two shots. After Hardin fell to the ground, Arellano immediately called the police.
Erica Arellano was detained at the scene and was subsequently charged with second-degree murder in the death of Marcus Hardin. The shooting marked the second homicide investigation in Colorado Springs for that year. Hardin, a longtime resident of Colorado, was a father of three and was remembered by his family and friends as a caring and loving man who was always smiling.
