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Painful silence | Headlines

Broadcast United News Desk
Painful silence | Headlines

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Western Bureau:

It’s been a week since 38-year-old Marlon Davis was shot and killed while hunting birds in the bush near Barrett Hall, St James. Despite the time that has passed, his family is still in deep grief and still reeling from several unanswered questions.

Even more sad is that the family told The Gleaners They have received no contact information from any game staff, including the person who allegedly fired the fatal shot, nor have they received the answers they desperately need.

“This is my stomach aching. This is my son, and his life is gone. Marlon is never coming back,” Nora Walters said in a statement to The Gleaners.

“(He) died because of the Nardi fridge and he didn’t deserve it. Father, please deal with this, God. Vengeance belongs to you, God,” she continued, sitting next to the deceased’s stepfather, Whitford McKenzie, trying to comfort each other.

“Marlon is gone. There will be no more Marlon. You will never see him again until the resurrection… May God rest his soul. My son did not deserve this. His innocent blood spilled on the ground, crying out to God on the buds,” she added.

Davis, a much-loved woodcarver known as “Nash” in the Kerry Park community of Trelawny, was the youngest of his mother’s four sons.

He has taken up shooting game birds as a passionate hobby for the past decade and is looking forward to the 2024 season, which begins Saturday, August 17, and will run for the next six weekends.

Davis was reportedly shot by a hunter around 6:30 a.m. on the first day of hunting season and later died.

Police are inclined to believe this is an accidental death, but the case is still under investigation.

Superintendent Elon Samuels, commander of St James police station, said: “The investigation is ongoing and we are taking statements from everyone who was present at the scene.” The Gleaners.

Davis’ mother is questioning why no member of the shooting team has contacted her.

“No one comes to ask who the child’s mother is? They don’t respect me as a mother, they don’t care at all… This is not right. No, I am not happy with the way they treat me as (his) mother,” Walters said.

Davis left behind a 15-year-old daughter, with whom family members said he had a very special bond.

His family and the wider Kerry Park community viewed him as a provider, protector and friend.

“The little girl loved him and he loved her. No matter what happened to her, he was there for her. He made sure she went to school every day and provided for her. She was supposed to go to school in September and no one came?” Walters asked again.

“When Marlon walked down the street, he told them the only thing he couldn’t take away from me was the color of my skin, and my daddy and my Miss Marlon,” the stepfather interjected.

During last year’s bird hunting season, Davis slipped and broke his leg in three places. The accident made his family worry about whether he could continue to hunt birds this year.

As she recalled their last interaction, his girlfriend of four years, Deborah Chin, told The Gleaners His death left a hole in her heart.

“He promised me he wouldn’t do anything to hurt himself again. What happened last year worried me. You can’t stop someone from doing something he loves for so long. We packed his bags and he left,” Chin said.

“I was very sad because I got the same call last year. This year, the call was so overwhelming that I was devastated. It’s a call you never want to get. It puts you in a situation where you lose someone in your life. It’s painful and it’s horrible,” she added.

“I was looking for him, waiting for him. (It’s hurtful) that no one has said to me, his mother, father and brothers, ‘We are deeply sorry’ during this incident, as if his life was not valued,” Chin said.

“I wish those involved would have put in the effort and urgency to come talk to my family,” said Max, the victim’s brother. “It’s not a good situation. I’m very unhappy with how it’s been handled so far.”

ashley.anguin@gleanerjm.com

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