In the afternoon of February 20, 2018, the life of 23-year-old Devin Qwayshon Bowles was tragically cut short by gunfire in Newport News, Virginia. The shooting occurred shortly before 3:00 p.m. in the 800 block of Lassiter Drive, at the Lassiter Courts apartment complex. When Newport News Police Officers arrived at the scene, they discovered Bowles suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
He was pronounced deceased at the scene at 2:59 p.m., leaving behind two young sons and a grieving family who remembered him as the youngest of five children.
The investigation into the homicide continued for several months. On July 13, 2018, the Newport News Police Department made an arrest in connection with Bowles' death. Jamari Dalton Saunders-Lewis, a 20-year-old man from Hampton, was taken into custody. Detectives had secured warrants against Saunders-Lewis, and he was subsequently charged with first-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and a drug-related offense for distribution or intent to distribute marijuana.
Following the arrest, the case against Jamari Dalton Saunders-Lewis moved through the judicial system. He had a preliminary hearing in Newport News General District Court on April 12, 2019, where the charges were certified to a grand jury. On May 17, 2019, a Newport News Circuit Court grand jury indicted Saunders-Lewis on charges of first-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, marking a significant step in the legal proceedings surrounding the death of Devin Bowles. The community and Bowles' family held vigils and memorials, calling for an end to the violence that took the young father's life.
