Witnesses recall shooting death in police statements

Witness statements implicate a 21-year-old Tyler Junior College student in a fatal Oct. 14 shooting at Varsity Place Apartments, according to an arrest warrant affidavit obtained by the Patriot Talon.

One witness told Tyler police she saw Jeremy Jarrod Walker cocking a gun in the parking lot where the shooting occurred and another witness reported hearing Walker say, “he fired the gun in the air,” according to an affidavit prepared by investigator Gregg Roberts.

Walker admitted he owned the Glock pistol allegedly used in the shooting and claims he loaned it to his friend Keith Dotson, of Houston.

Walker said Dotson fired his handgun into the crowd but “did not know if Dotson actually shot anyone,” according to the affidavit.

In the same interview with detectives, Walker later denied any knowledge of the gun.

Walker, a criminal justice major from Houston, is charged with murder in the death of Rickey Reymon Davis, 20, of Hallsville.

The shooting occurred in the parking lot of Varsity Place Apartments. Davis died at the scene.

Walker

An autopsy conducted by The Dallas County Medical Examiners office showed Davis died from a single gunshot wound to the head.

A third witness said an altercation occurred between Dotson and three men at the apartment complex just prior to the shooting. Dotson was injured during the altercation when he was punched in the mouth.

Davis was at Varsity Place Apartments, but it appears he was not involved in the altercation with Dotson.

A fourth witness told detectives Walker and Dotson, along with two other people, got into Walker’s car after the altercation and went to Cambridge Apartment to retrieve the gun from another friend.

Police searched Walker’s apartment after the shooting and found a .40-caliber Glock pistol and a loaded magazine in an air-conditioning access area in the roof above the guest bedroom. Police also recovered a holster, according to the affidavit.

Dotson was arrested for unrelated warrants for criminal trespass and traffic violations shortly after the shooting.

Walker remains in custody at the Smith County Jail on a $752,000 bond, according to police reports.