In the autumn of 2016, a 20-year-old Black / African American man named Marquis Gaston was killed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. On October 9th, near 27th and Roosevelt, his life was cut short by gunfire. The incident left his family searching for answers, grappling with the sudden and violent loss of a young man they loved. His sister, Curby Madisett, expressed the deep frustration and pain of not knowing why it happened, a sentiment that would linger as the investigation into his death began.
For more than a year, the case remained unresolved, and the person responsible for Marquis Gaston's death was at large. Investigators believed that the suspect, Jaylind Newell, knew Gaston. The motive appeared to be robbery, as it was reported that after shooting Gaston multiple times in the chest with a. 40 caliber handgun, Newell went through his belongings. A crucial piece of evidence, a fingerprint found on a hair pick left at the scene, pointed investigators toward Newell.
After a lengthy period of uncertainty for Gaston's family, a breakthrough came in February 2018. U.S. Marshals and Milwaukee police located and arrested Jaylind Newell near 38th and Custer. He had been living with his girlfriend, and his capture was not without resistance; he was found hiding in a kitchen cabinet and fought with officers before being taken into custody. Newell had previously been featured as one of Wisconsin's Most Wanted and had even been arrested in Waukesha on drug charges in 2017, but was released because a warrant for the murder had not yet been issued. The arrest of Newell finally offered a path toward justice for Marquis Gaston's family, though it could never bring him back.
