‘You’ve taken everything from us.’ Tacoma teen sentenced for murder of 16-year-old boy

The first of three people accused of murdering a 16-year-old boy in a hail of gunfire outside a Tacoma apartment has pleaded guilty and was sentenced Friday to 20 years in state custody.

Devonte Jayquan Pool, 18, pleaded guilty earlier this month to second-degree murder for the March 29, 2023 fatal shooting of Larry Marshall III, who was known to friends and family as Trae.

The shooting occurred in the parking lot of a West End apartment complex on South Mildred Street, across the street from Tacoma Community College. According to court documents, Marshall was visiting a friend there while Pool, who was 17 at the time, Vincent Lee Bradley III, then 16, and Isiah Davon Martin, 29, waited for him in a red Dodge Charger.

When Marshall walked into the lot, Pool got out of the back of the car and Bradley exited the passenger side. Records state Marshall ran from them, and the two fired at least 33 rounds at him. One bullet struck him in the neck, and two more hit him in the back. He was declared dead at the scene.

Marshall was one of three teenagers who were fatally shot in Tacoma last year during an uptick in violence among young people.

On Friday, after Pierce County Superior Court Judge Philip Sorensen heard from prosecutors and the defense, as well as family of Marshall and Pool and the defendant himself, the judge imposed his sentence, which was two years longer than attorneys for either side agreed to recommend. Pool will be in his late 30s when he is released.

“I wish that there was something that I could do to give either family their child back,” Sorensen said. “I can’t. Nothing that I can do. I wish there was.”

Bradley pleaded guilty to second-degree murder the same day as Pool, and he is expected to be sentenced Jan. 17, 2025. Prosecutors have agreed to recommend an 18-year sentence.

Martin’s case is pending with a court date in December. He remains in custody on $1.5 million bail and is accused of conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder.

All three defendants in the shooting had known gang ties or were members of specific gangs, prosecutors wrote in charging papers. Marshall’s murder is believed to have been retaliation for Martin being robbed at gunpoint while he got a haircut at the Tacoma Mall four days before the shooting.

Marshall was not involved in the robbery, but he was reportedly friends with the two young men convicted of carrying it out, Tyrus Kenneth Walker-Scott and Isaiah J. Williams. Both pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery, and Walker-Scott additionally pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a machine gun. Walker-Scott was sentenced last December to a little more than four years in prison, and Williams was sentenced Aug. 2 to just over five-and-a-half years.

After the robbery, Martin allegedly used a car he’d rented about two weeks earlier at an Enterprise Rent-A-Car location on South Tacoma Way to drive Pool and Bradley to the apartment complex where the younger defendants killed Marshall.

Marshall’s father, Larry Marshall Jr., went to the same barber where the robbery occurred. After Friday’s sentencing hearing, he told The News Tribune he went into the shop the day after the robbery and heard about what had happened. Marshall Jr. said the barber was a good guy who used to speak life into his son.

The father said he believes his son was targeted because he took a picture with the people who did the robbery. Kids are soft and emotional, he said, and something as simple as cursing out a young person can get you shot.

Marshall was a student at Foss High School, where he played football. Since last year, the team has worn jerseys that bear Marshall’s initials “LM,” his father said. He also played travel basketball. He and his two sisters were raised in Virginia, but his mother is from Seattle, and they lived in Tacoma for about three years before the shooting.

His mother, Jillian Marshall, said her son was an amazing kid and a ray of sunshine who was friends with everyone. She said he brought amazing people into their lives, and he’d touched more people in the three years he lived in Tacoma than she would in 100 years.

Victim’s family addresses the court

More than two dozen people filled the courtroom gallery during the sentencing hearing. Emotions ran high at times while relatives of the victim and the defendant addressed the judge.

Pool sat quietly during the hearing except when it was his turn to speak. He was unshackled and wore brown and pink jail clothing.

Deputy prosecuting attorney Brad Hashimoto asked Sorensen to follow the recommended sentence, 18 years, which the defense agreed on and was said to be heavily negotiated.

Pool’s defense attorney, Warren Joseph Corey-Boule, said he wanted the court to know that Pool understands his conduct in the case was inexcusable, and that was the reason he had pleaded guilty. He described the recommended sentence as a down-the-middle punishment and noted that Pool has no prior criminal history.

The standard sentencing range in the case was 123 to 220 months, not including the 60-month firearm sentencing enhancement that Pool pleaded guilty to.

Corey-Boule said Pool had expressed remorse to him, and he believed he was sincere. He said Pool’s youthfulness meant he had an inherent capacity for change, and he believed a standard-range sentence was appropriate given the severity of the offense. He said it would also protect the public by achieving a lengthy term of incarceration.

After Sorensen asked Pool some standard questions — to which Pool responded “Yes your honor” — three members of the victim’s family addressed the court.

Marshall’s mother spoke first, appearing to speak directly to Pool. She told him he had taken her son’s future away from him for something Marshall had no involvement in, and her son’s death had affected her family both emotionally and financially because she’s had to take extended time off work.

“You’ve taken everything from us,” Jillian Marshall said. “He was supposed to be playing football and basketball right now, not in a box in his room.”

Marshall’s father spoke next. He asked the judge to impose “the worst sentence possible” and said Pool didn’t deserve a second chance. While he spoke, he wore a necklace with a silver pendant that contained some of his son’s ashes.

“He’s not here in person to speak for himself, and it’s not fair” Marshall Jr. said. “He’s not remorseful. They’re saying ‘yes sir’ now because it’s sentencing time. Now you gotta own it. He didn’t turn himself in. He was caught.”

The father said Pool may not have a criminal record, but he said his Instagram showed he loved guns and smoking.

The defendant’s Instagram account was included in court records, and on Friday it showed about 60 videos collected under a highlight titled “GangLand!!!” that depicted Pool and others flashing hand signs, smoking blunts and showing off money. One photo posted around late October or early November 2022 showed Pool holding a handgun with an extended drum magazine while two others fanned out cash.

“If he wants to change, let him do it from behind bars,” Marshall Jr. said.

Marshall Jr. asked the judge to excuse him before saying “[Expletive] him completely. [Expletive] him and his family.” After he sat down, Marshall Jr. apologized for his words. Sorensen said Marshall was the victim’s father, and he was going to get away with that, but he was going to tell everyone else that the courtroom is as close to a place of respect as they can get.

Marshall’s sister, Brianna, spoke third. She stood with a victim advocate and cried at times while she addressed the judge. She lamented going through Christmas and birthdays without her brother, and she said it wasn’t fair that he didn’t get to graduate high school with his best friend and cousin. She asked for the maximum sentence, which would be life in prison.

“Nobody ever is gonna get him back,” Brianna Marshall said. “We’re just living through memories and piece by piece.

Pool and his mother speak in court

After Marshall’s family members said their piece, the court allowed the defendant’s mother, Mary Pool, to speak to the judge.

The mother said her son was born and raised in Tacoma, and he’s not a bad kid. She said he’s leaving behind a family that loves him, and she didn’t think he deserves a life sentence because everyone makes mistakes.

“I truly apologize to the family,” Mary Pool said.

“I just think that my son was hanging out with the wrong people at the wrong time,” she added.

Then it was the defendant’s turn to speak. He stood with his arms crossed and said he had hurt his family along with the victim’s.

“I’ll be taking full accountability for this taking place,” Pool said. “During the course of my incarceration, I’ll be taking full advantage of all the tools and resources that is available to me to become a better man. I hope that one day you’ll forgive me.”

After court adjourned, Marshall’s mother told The News Tribune there’s “never enough time” to make a fair punishment in a case such as this, but she was glad the judge added a couple of years. She said she felt that her daughter’s words had persuaded him.

Jillian Marshall said the statements of Pool and his mother felt rehearsed. Marshall Jr. said it felt like an “act.” But Jillian said she did feel bad for Pool and Bradley because they were persuaded by the older defendant, Martin, an adult who she said should have been guiding them in the right direction.

“But they know right from wrong,” Jillian Marshall said. “My 14 year old knows right from wrong.”