Two 19-year-old men were arrested Tuesday on capital murder charges for the Aug. 22 shooting death of Timothy Chase Humphries, 22, of Hot Springs, on Lakeland Drive, Garland County Sheriff Mike McCormick said Wednesday.
Tyler Lamar Malik McKisick, who lists a Central Avenue address, and Gerrard Richard Wells, who lists a Magnolia Street address, were arrested separately on Tuesday by Garland County sheriff's investigators.
Capital murder is punishable by up to life in prison or the death penalty, unless it is waived by prosecutors.
McKisick was also charged with fleeing in a vehicle, three counts of carrying prohibited weapons and possession of a controlled substance. They both remained in custody Wednesday on zero bond and are set to appear Friday in Garland County District Court.
According to the affidavit, at 11:03 p.m. Aug. 22, deputies responded to a 911 call from 509 Lakeland Drive in reference to a person being shot. Humphries, who had been shot once in the abdomen, had been transported by private vehicle to CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs, where he was pronounced dead.
Humphries' family and friends knew him as "Chase," a fun-loving, selfless young man who never turned down the chance to help a stranger in need, his mother, Cheryl Teague, told The Sentinel-Record Wednesday. She said the time between his death and the arrests Tuesday had been very difficult for her family.
"My heart goes out to the families of the accused, (but) I cannot minimize the anguish my family has suffered. Not only the actual loss of our precious Chase, but in the waiting and wondering who could possibly want to take his young life from us," Teague said.
"This can only be described as an atrocious tragedy and a seemingly unending nightmare. No one should be asked to endure what me and my family have experienced since that fateful day," she said.
She described her son as a "kindhearted child (that) never lost his compassion." She recalled a memory of a young Humphries giving his boots to a homeless man he met on the street in need of proper shoes, and the times he spent working with his father as a promising electrical apprentice.
"This was the life snuffed out by two other young men whose families are suffering along with mine," she said.
According to the probable cause affidavit, a female witness who was inside the residence at the time of the shooting gave a statement to investigator John Greathouse and Cpl. Terry Threadgill, stating Humphries and a friend were preparing for a fishing trip.
She said she heard what sounded like gunshots, followed by Humphries running inside saying he had been shot and needed help.
On Aug. 25, a woman who lives in the area of 509 Lakeland told investigators she had security video of a light-colored vehicle she did not recognize. The video showed a gray Ford Taurus with rain guards backing into a driveway and a person exiting the vehicle on the passenger side and walking toward 509 Lakeland.
On Sept. 5, another woman called investigators, alleging McKisick had told her and two other women he had shot someone. He reportedly drove them by 509 Lakeland and pointed out where the shooting had occurred.
McKisick allegedly told the women not to say anything or he would kill them. At that point, he reportedly pulled out a black .40-caliber Glock handgun. The witness told investigators McKisick habitually hangs out around the Peaks Apartments.
On Sept. 11, investigators arrested a known associate of McKisick leaving the Peaks Apartments on a probation violation. The man was interviewed on Sept. 19 and allegedly told investigators McKisick came to his house the night after the shooting.
He said McKisick told him he "shot that white boy on Lakeland Drive," and "the newspaper said he had died." He reportedly provided investigators with information not released to the public. He told them McKisick was driving another person's vehicle at the time of the shooting and investigators later determined it matched the one seen in the security video.
On Sept. 29, Lt. Joel Ware and Investigator Matt Ellis interviewed the owner of the vehicle. She told them McKisick used her car for an extended period of time on the night of Aug. 22. She said she became concerned and started calling his cellphone, calling him around 20 times without success.
Eventually, he called her back to say he was on his way back, and she stated she could hear sirens in the background. She said he arrived at the house around 15 to 20 minutes later with Wells.
McKisick reportedly came inside and told her that "Bookie G," a known alias for Wells, was outside and asked if he could come in. Wells entered the residence and reportedly stayed for around 15 minutes before leaving.
After Wells left, she said McKisick told her Wells shot "a white boy" while attempting to rob him. He told her Wells "panicked" when the victim tried to get something out of the back of his vehicle and shot him once in the gut. He told her Wells picked up the expended shell casing and ran away after hearing a female scream.
She said she asked McKisick if it was her vehicle they used, and he told her it was, but they had parked it up a hill and walked to the victim's trailer. The witness was shown a still image from the security camera footage and she positively identified the vehicle as her 2001 gray Ford Taurus.
On Tuesday, sheriff 's investigators, assisted by Hot Springs police, apprehended Wells in the 700 block of Park Avenue without incident, McCormick said.
Later that same day, Ellis reportedly noticed a gold Altima matching the description of a car associated with McKisick, and recognized him as a passenger in the vehicle. He set up surveillance on the vehicle and attempted a traffic stop.
The Altima's driver reportedly refused to stop and began to weave in and out of traffic on Higdon Ferry Road, then turned south on Central at a high rate of speed, continuing to weave in and out of traffic and crossing into oncoming traffic several times until it turned down Hamilton Oaks Drive.
The driver stopped the car at the dead end of Hamilton Oaks. The driver got on the ground, but McKisick fled in the direction of the woods. Ellis, catching glimpses of McKisick's white shirt and following directions given by bystanders, located McKisick in the parking lot of Atchley's Outpost.
Ellis gave a verbal command McKisick allegedly ignored as he continued to run toward the store, then hid behind the alley on the side of the store. He was given another verbal command to come out and complied as other units arrived on scene.
A firearm with six .38-caliber rounds was reportedly located in the alley where he had been hiding.
Two additional firearms, as well as a pill bottle containing approximately 6.5 grams of suspected marijuana, were reportedly located along the path where McKisick had fled.
Local on 10/05/2017