Sacramento Mass Shooting: Digging Into The Criminal History Of Suspect Dandrae Martin
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) -- One suspect has been arrested in Sacramento's deadly mass shooting, 26-year-old Dandrae Martin, who he's been booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail and faces multiple charges but none of them are for murder.
The arrest of the first suspect in the shooting prompted the need for more answers from community activists like Berry Accius.
"I think the right narrative is important because you don't want retaliation," Accius said. "You want to first put the family at ease, and then you want to put the city at ease."
Police say Martin is one of the shooters involved. Investigators are not sure if he allegedly shot first or shot back after someone else opened fire. Martin was arrested for assault and illegal firearm possession after a crime Sacramento County's district attorney is just beginning to analyze.
"It's a big incident, there's no question," said District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert.
A social media post, dated after the shooting Sunday, on a profile matching Martin's description and name, said "SMH I'm hit." Several in the comments asked if he was OK. He never responded. Another post showed him on a different day posing with a gun in his hand.
"Some of these guys boast so much about what they want to do and how they are going to do it and tell on themselves," explained Accius.
Court records in California and Arizona shed more light on Martin's criminal history.
In 2014, he pleaded guilty to domestic violence in Riverside County, serving 30 days in jail and community service. In Arizona in 2016, he was charged with felony aggravated assault and domestic violence and sentenced to two and a half years.
In 2018, he was charged again with domestic violence, misdemeanor criminal damage and a felony marijuana violation. In 2019, he was found guilty of violating his probation.
"It's probably more complex than any other case in Sacramento history bar the Golden State Killer case," explained Sacramento Defense Attorney Jennifer Mouzis.
Mouzis said Martin could face more serious charges connected to the shooting as the case develops.
"[Investigators] will often do that when they want more time to develop their case," she explained. "The early arrest gives some indication that they are not struggling with a whodunit."
Mouzis believes investigators and Schubert will take time in how they proceed in the investigation.
"I think, importantly, because of the loss of life, one or more people may be eligible for the death penalty using a special circumstance of multiple murders," she said. "The police and the DA will be very cautious and proceed in a way to best capture the evidence because of the severity of the potential sentence of one or more people."
