In the early morning hours of April 27, 2020, the life of 18-year-old Marcello English, a Black male, was cut short in the St. Martin community of Mississippi. His body was discovered by Jackson County sheriff's deputies around 1:30 a.m. at the intersection of Amhurst Street and Hamilton Drive. English had been fatally shot in what authorities described as an altercation that occurred during a planned sale of an assault weapon. Another young man, 18-year-old Derrick Craft, who was with English, was also shot and critically injured in the incident.
The investigation into the shooting led to the swift arrests of four teenagers. Christian Terrin Kennedy, 19, and Caden Kennedy Walker, 16, were taken into custody and faced initial charges of aggravated assault. Walker was charged as an adult. Kennedy also faced an additional charge of directing a minor to commit a felony. Subsequently, two more teenagers, a 17-year-old from Biloxi and a 15-year-old from Ocean Springs, were arrested and charged with accessory after the fact.
Despite the arrests, no one was immediately charged with the murder of Marcello English, a point of contention for his grieving family. They publicly questioned the initial charges and expressed their belief that race was a factor in the handling of the case, as English was Black and three of the four suspects were white. The family voiced their outrage and called for justice for their loved one, affectionately known as 'Boolee.'
Authorities announced that the evidence gathered in the investigation would be presented to a grand jury to determine if the charges against the suspects would be upgraded to murder. Following the initial arrests, all four teenagers were released from jail on bond. The bonds for Kennedy and Walker, initially set at $260,000 and $250,000 respectively, were later reduced. The two younger teens were released on bonds of $25,000 each. The case was bound over to a grand jury, leaving the ultimate decision on more severe charges pending further legal review.
