Dead man was out on bond
Harris was charged with theft of firearm
A 19-year-old man shot and killed earlier this month during the course of a robbery by an elderly Genoa, Ark., homeowner was free on bond from a firearms charge in Bowie County, Texas, at the time of his death.
Shemar Davion Harris was fatally shot by an 81-year-old man who told investigators that being robbed six times in the past 10 months prompted him to routinely arm himself, according to earlier reports. Harris was facing a charge of theft of a firearm in Bowie County in connection with an Aug. 5 arrest at Academy Sports in Texarkana, Texas.
Academy Sports employees recognized off-duty police officer Alan Bailey, who was shopping in the store, and asked him for help with a man they suspected was stealing ammunition, according to a probable cause affidavit used to create the following account. Bailey approached the man, identified later as Harris, and identified himself as a police officer.
Harris allegedly began pulling out store merchandise he had concealed in his clothing but started running when a staff member told Bailey there was more in the man’s pockets. Bailey chased Harris into the parking lot, where a good Samaritan attempted to help bring Harris into custody. Harris turned and pointed a handgun at the civilian before continuing to run.
When Bailey caught up to Harris, he “struggled and reached for his pocket,” leading others in the parking lot to warn the officers of the firearm. Bailey’s hand was broken during the struggle to bring Harris under control with the help of two citizens. Officers discovered a bag of marijuana in Harris’ pocket.
“Just after I had placed him in cuffs, one of the citizens that assisted Officer Bailey handed me a small Smith & Wesson .40 caliber handgun that Officer Bailey observed being pulled from the
suspect’s pocket,” states an affidavit prepared by Texarkana, Texas, Police Officer Clint Akin. “The weapon had been cleared by the citizen, but he informed me that it had a loaded magazine with seven rounds in it and there was a round in the chamber.”
A statement Harris made on his way to the jail in Akin’s patrol car was foreboding.
“I’m gonna get bonded out and do this s**t again,” the affidavit states.
The gun’s serial number reflected that it had been reported stolen in Bowie County. Ammunition worth $82.96 was returned to Academy.
Harris pleaded guilty to the firearm theft in September and was in court Oct. 6 for sentencing. Harris’ public defender had arranged for him to receive a term of probation as part of a plea agreement. However, 202nd District Judge John Tidwell refused to accept the plea agreement, alluding that he was uncomfortable with Harris receiving probation after pulling a loaded firearm in the parking lot of a crowded retail store while locals were there doing back-to-school shopping.
Tidwell told Harris he would allow him to withdraw his guilty plea and take his case to a jury. Harris was shot and killed Nov. 2 in Genoa during the week before his next scheduled court date before Tidwell in Bowie County.
In the days following the shooting in Genoa, three women were arrested and charged in Miller County with aggravated robbery. Kiana Keshaun Montgomery, 21, Shaynesha Martin, 20, and Ke’Erica Turner, 20, face 10 to 40 years or life in prison if convicted of aggravated robbery.
All three women remain in the Miller County jail. Bail for Montgomery is set at $100,000. Bail for Martin and Turner is set at $50,000. All three are scheduled to appear in court Dec. 5 before a Miller County circuit judge.