Police ID shooting victim
A Hot Springs man who was shot and killed Monday evening was identified by Hot Springs police Tuesday as Cory Terrance Gibson, 39, and detectives have developed a person of interest in the case, police said in a news release.
Officers responded to a reported shooting at 133 Chapel St. shortly after 6 p.m. and arrived to find Gibson with an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later, the release said.
A photographer for The Sentinel-Record at the scene said a large area in front of that address was cordoned off by crime scene tape, and several officers and a detective could be observed working the crime scene.
According to court records, Gibson was ar
rested June 1 on a felony charge of theft by receiving but pleaded no contest on July 29 in Garland County District Court after the charge was amended to a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to one year in jail with all but 59 days suspended and released for time served that day.
He was placed on not less than six months’ probation and was ordered to check in with his probation officer within 24 hours of his release. A failure to comply warrant was issued for him on Aug. 22 and he was arrested again on Aug. 26.
Gibson appeared before Judge Ralph Ohm later that same day and agreed to comply with his probation requirements rather than serve 30 days in jail.
He was released that day on
$1,000 bond and was set for a probation review hearing on Tuesday. He reportedly called the district court clerk’s office Monday morning to confirm his hearing date and time.
Gibson’s death was the city’s
11th homicide of 2019, which have resulted from 10 separate incidents of violence. Of those deaths, 10 were the result of fatal shootings, including Gibson’s death. One person was brutally beaten to death.
In comparison, six murders were reported in 2018 and eight in 2017, according to information the city reports to the Arkansas Crime Information Center.
After more than half a dozen fatal shootings and an officer-involved shooting in a 12-week span this summer, Hot Springs Police Chief Jason Stachey invited local church, school, government, business and law enforcement leaders to a roundtable discussion Aug. 7.
Later that month, the Hot Springs Police Department launched a “Cool Down Hot Springs” campaign as a potential first step in solving the problem.
The campaign’s webpage at http:// www.cityhs.net/CoolDown-HS has more information with links to categories within the online Ouachita Regional Resource Guide, including contacts for services relating to abuse, counseling, criminal justice and legal services, hotlines and mental health.