McMaryion Is Charged With Capital Murder And Aggravated Assualt With A Deadly Weapon
DESOTO – The 19-year-old man charged this past Saturday by DeSoto Police for the May 15 fatal shooting of a 34-year-old Midlothian man, once had a promising career in football. He graduated in 2020 from Midland Lee High School as a wide receiver.
But instead of finding fame on the grid iron, Evan McMaryion, 19-year-old DeSoto resident, has been charged by DeSoto police with capital murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the fatal shooting of Randall “Scott” Thornhill. Thornhill was shot multiple times in the 300 block of Elerson Drive in DeSoto.
McMaryion is now facing extradition charges back to Texas from Arizona where he is in custody.
“This was another instance where good, aggressive detective work and fast follow-up on solid leads allowed us to quickly identify and ultimately apprehend a capital murder suspect,” said DeSoto Police Chief Joe Costa.
McMaryion has been in trouble with the law before. In September he was arrested in Titus County on charges of Unauthorized Use of Vehicle and Possession of a Controlled Substance.
He was arrested in October and December 2020 by DeSoto Police. In DeSoto he was arrested for assault by threats-family violence; evading arrest detention; unauthorized use of vehicle in October. DeSoto police did not respond by deadline for information regarding the charges for the December arrest.
A Senseless Tragedy
Thornhill was shot multiple times while in his vehicle waiting at the gate of a home for entry to the property. He did not survive his injuries. According to the obituary, Thornhill was a truck driver mechanic.
Also in the white Mazda 3 Thornhill was driving was his partner Heather French, 29 a resident of Midlothian. She was wounded but did not have life-threatening injuries. In the backseat there was a five-year-old child who fortunately was not physically harmed. The 5-year-old was being dropped off to visit his father, who lives and works on the property.
According to reports McMaryion lived nearby with his parents. While police believe the motive was carjacking, friends of the victims say he “just started shooting” without making any demands. They’re hoping for more answers to understand the senseless tragedy.
From the father of Heather French: “To the Midlothian community, families and friends. I wanted to come to you and take a minute to update you on the happenings of Saturday, May 15, 2021. It will be much easier to update in mass vs the individual conservations that have been occurring.
So, on Saturday, May 15, 2021 tragedy struck my eldest daughter Heather’s family. Her husband Randall Scott Thornhill was taken from her, their son Noah, and us. He was shot to death in front of Heather and Noah during an attempting to carjacking (according to the ongoing police investigation). Heather also was shot though the right arm while trying to ensure the safety of their child.
This all took place while they were parked in front of Noah’s biological farther home in which they were waiting for Noah’s biological father to arrive home and let them in the farm gates. Heather and Noah are devastated by their loss and memories they will forever have considering the tragic events they have experienced.
As a father-in-law I can not put into words how I feel other than knowing that Randall Scott Thornhill loved our Heather and Noah with all his heart. He always told me he loved them more than the sun and the moon and would die for them. Well as it turns out he did just that and he will be forever loved and missed.
If you would like to help Heather and Noah a GoFundMe account has been setup by Nathan George whom is employer of Noah’s biological father.
https://gofund.me/8654b718″
DeSoto Police Chief Joe Costa said he is working with the City of DeSoto on a gun buyback program. The goal to decrease the number of weapons in DeSoto to help reduce violence.
Costa said many guns used to commit crimes come from thefts.
DeSoto Chief of Police Asks Residents To Secure Their Property Including Guns
People leave their cars unlocked and have guns, purses, credit cards stolen among other items. While Texas is a state where many residents do carry guns, there are also instances when a person passes away and the family isn’t sure what to do with guns nor do they wish to keep the firearm.
“Eventually guns can fall into the wrong hands and be used illegally,” Costa said.
Chief Costa said the program, when up and running, will help rid some of the overabundance of available guns on the streets.
“McMaryion and guys like him check car doors for unlocked cars and they don’t even have to break in a car window,” Costa added. “People need to remember to lock their car doors every time they get out of their vehicle.”
Chief Costa also emphasized, “If residents have any factual information about a crime they should share it with our detectives and resist the urge to post rumors on social media.”
