By Kayode Crown
Following months of protest and civic unrest, authorities in north Alabama charged a Decatur police officer in the shooting and killing Stephen Perkins in his front yard.
Morgan County District Attorney Scott Anderson announced on Friday that Bailey Marquette was indicted on a murder charge. Marquette was fired from the Decatur police force in early December, a little over two months after the fatal shooting.
Marquette, 23 of Hartselle, was taken into custody Thursday by Sheriff Ron Puckett at the Morgan County Jail, the sheriff’s office announced. He was booked on $30,000 bond and he bonded out soon after his booking this morning.
“This was not an easy thing to do. It was not easy for the grand jury and it was not easy for me,” Anderson said. Anderson said the 18 member grand jury was a “good representation of Morgan County, con- sisting of eight men, 10 women, 15 of them white, and three Black, and ranging in age from 30 to 78.
“They come from all walks of life. There’s retirees, professionals, plant workers, there was a stay-at-home mom, members of the clergy, nurses and teachers,” Anderson said.
“They were from all over Morgan County… and they were charged with a very tough task and they rose to that occasion. They all took an oath to seek the truth and do justice and to show no partiality or favor between the powerful and the weak, the rich and the poor,” Anderson said.
Anderson said he is not releasing body camera footage because of its importance in the trial but would grant the family to see it.
“Our community as a whole has suffered,” Anderson said. The shooting has prompted multiple protests.
Three other officers fired or suspended by Decatur and named in a federal lawsuit, Christopher Mukkadam, Joey Williams, and Vance Summers, were not indicted. The officers have appealed those actions by the city, as has Marquette.
Anderson said the grand jury found the other three officers did not violate the law. “I agree completely,” Anderson said.
“I understand fully that there are some of our community that think there should have been more than one officer charged in this situation. There’s also some who think that no one who should have been charged,” Anderson said.
Only the grand jury know all the facts of the case, Anderson said.
On the night of his Sept. 29 death, police have said, Perkins had a gun and threatened a tow truck driver who was trying to repossess his vehicle. The tow truck driver left but returned later with police, who shot and killed Perkins, a 39-year- old husband, father, and gym enthusiast.
Perkins’ family has continued to demand justice and sued the city, the officer involved in his death, the tow truck company, and the vehicle finance company.
The federal lawsuit alleges excessive force, wrongful death, civil rights violations, and unfair debt collection practices.
Catrela Perkins, who is Stephen Perkins’ widow, said that the $30,000 bond for Marquette was too low.
“I mean, a 30, 000 bond for murder? Come on. That’s ridiculous,” she told AL.com after the announcement of the indictment. “I see other people who have gotten murder charges, bonds are like $300,000. You are talking about a $30,000 bond for murder. I’m not happy about that.”
Catrela Perkins was at the press conference this morning at the Morgan County DA’s office for the indictment’s announcement.
Perkins died after being shot in his front yard. Security camera footage released by the Perkins family showed that it was dark outside when Perkins walked out into his yard while shining a light and shouted for the tow truck driver to put his vehicle down. Police appeared and an officer shouted for Perkins to get on the ground. A split second later, 18 gunshots rang out.
