A Cheyenne 17-year-old has been charged as an adult with attempted murder for allegedly putting a gun to the head of a Colorado teen, then shooting at him multiple times as the other teen was driving away.
Marquis Taylor made his first appearance in Laramie County Circuit Court on Wednesday, charged with second-degree attempted murder and aggravated assault and battery.
The charges stem from an altercation Sunday between Taylor and a victim identified as 17-year-old “BR” from Wellington, Colorado, according to a Laramie County Sheriff’s Office affidavit written by Detective Miles DePrimo.
During the argument, between three and six shots were fired from a handgun outside of Taylor’s house in the 500 block of Julianna Road.
In the affidavit, DePrimo writes that neighbors of Taylor called 911 at 4:16 a.m. Sunday to report shots fired. Officers detained Taylor at a party involving other teens.
BR had driven from Wellington to Taylor’s house to pick up someone referred to in the affidavit as SC, whom he was dating. Another youth, MP, told DePrimo that SC and BR had been verbally fighting, and SC’s behavior was “suspicious.”
Taylor and MP followed SC to BR’s car. MP asked BR if he could provide rides for other friends because MP’s parents were kicking all juveniles out of the house due to the late hour.
The affidavit reports that Taylor shook BR’s hand and introduced himself, saying SC was like a “sister” to him. BR told officers he thought the statement was weird because he’d been dating the girl for three years and didn’t know Taylor, the affidavit says.
BR said Taylor began being hostile and “pushy” toward him, and added that Taylor was wearing dark clothing with some sort of fanny-pack and a tan strap slung over his chest. BR said Taylor took what he believed to be a 9 mm handgun and pushed it against the left side of BR’s head.
Gun Pressed To The Head
BR said Taylor also pointed the gun at SC, who was sitting in the passenger seat and talking to MP with the door open.
DePrimo stated that Taylor kept the gun pressed to BR’s head and reached into the vehicle, unbuckling the driver’s side seatbelt. BR told the officer that he thought he heard a “click” from the gun.
He added that Taylor was “talking all kinds of words” but he doesn’t remember the exact statements.
BR said he was terrified and tried to think about how to escape the situation. He considered grabbing the barrel of the pistol but didn’t because he didn’t want anyone to get shot.
BR told officers Taylor was accusing him of not taking care of SC. BR was aware that MP had told SC that Taylor wanted to have a three-way sexual interaction with SC.
“This was the reason SC texted BR and asked him to come up from Wellington to pick her up,” DePrimo wrote.
BR and SC both said that when he began to drive away, Taylor began firing the handgun he had pointed at his head into BR’s Chevy Equinox. SC believed she heard three or four shots. MP and another witness also came outside when they heard gunshots.
Investigators discovered multiple bullet holes, and damage appearing to come from a firearm, before securing the car and towing it for evidence.
BR told officers he believed the shooting might have been Taylor retaliating for an April assault of SC by friends of Taylor’s. BR said his girlfriend was afraid of what her attackers were capable of so she didn’t report the assault to law enforcement.
However, she later spent time in the hospital because of internal bleeding. At the hospital SC told a detective about the assault.
Investigators recovered three .45-caliber casings near the residence, and later a .45-caliber Rock Island handgun from MP’s bedroom. MP told police she did not own or possess a firearm, but Taylor had access to her room before and after the shooting.
Discarded Shell Casins Found
An individual named Dylan Miller, 16, was at the scene and said he saw Taylor and the others run inside the house, where Taylor allegedly hid the gun in a bedroom closet.
The affidavit stated that the magazine was discarded, along with a live .45 caliber shell casing near the location of the shooting.
After Taylor was transported to the Laramie County Juvenile Services Center, three empty spent .45 caliber shell casings were pulled from his pocket. In total, six shell casings believed to have been fired from the gun Taylor possessed were recovered.
Taylor was arrested on two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and four counts of using a firearm to commit a felony.
Taylor invoked his Miranda rights and refused to answer questions from investigators without his parents or an attorney present.
A neighbor told officers he was awakened by an engine revving and the sound of at least three gunshots. He said he saw an African American male walk into his view, and the man told a girl “something like ‘I can’t, I have to find my casings.’”
Taylor appeared in court Wednesday and the charge was dropped to second-degree attempted murder, which carries a penalty of 20 years to life in prison. If convicted of assault and battery and threats with a weapon, the maximum penalty is 10 years and a $10,000 fine.
Taylor’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 28.
