Six-year-old Jeremy David Mardis died around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday after the auto driven by his father, Chris Few, had been chased by the marshals.
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Derrick Stafford, 32, of Mansura, and Norris Greenhouse Jr., 23, of Marksville, each faced charges of second-degree murder and second-degree attempted murder. State Police Colonel Mike Edmonson called this one of the most disturbing things he’s ever seen.
Few was not armed, the affiliate reported.
It’s still unclear what led police to pursue Mr Few and what triggered the shooting.
“We took a few of the body cam footage”, Edmonson said.
Edmonson said body camera footage helped lead to the arrests.
The tragic shooting occurred Tuesday night after a high-speed auto chase.
Marksville Police Chief Elster Smith Jr. could not be reached for comment Wednesday, as he spent the entire day on the scene of another major – though entirely unrelated – emergency in the small city of 5,700 that is also the parish seat. The video will likely not be released until the officers’ trials, Louisiana State Police said Saturday.
Phillips claimed he was arrested without a warrant or probable cause and charged with three counts of armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and illegal use of a weapon.
They were placed on administrative leave, as were two other marshals involved in the chase who have not been charged.
Jeremy Mardis, an autistic first-grader, is the youngest police-shooting victim this year.
Few’s 57-year-old stepfather, Morris German, accused the marshals of indiscriminately opening fire on the vehicle.
“He didn’t deserve to die like that”, Edmonson said.
The child, Jeremy Mardis, was in a vehicle with his father, Chris Few, when suspects allegedly rained gunfire on them.
Greenhouse and Stafford were working second jobs as city marshals when the shooting happened. “Nothing is more important than this badge that we are wearing on our uniform”, he said.
Dane S. Ciolino, law professor at Loyola University in New Orleans, said he’s not surprised the arrests were made quickly.
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Avoyelles Parish District Attorney Charles A. Riddle III offered his “sympathy and prayers” Friday night to Jeremy’s family and said that his office would recuse itself as soon as possible because of a relationship between one of the deputy marshals and an assistant district attorney in Riddle’s office.
