SHREVEPORT, La. — Shreveport police say advancements in body camera technology and cooperation from the community were key factors that led to an arrest in the deadly house fire that was ultimately ruled a homicide involving a juvenile suspect.
Cpl. Chris Bordelon said the department’s adoption of the AXON body camera system within the past year gave investigators new tools to enhance and analyze video evidence.
“With the AXON system, our investigators can zoom in, brighten, and maybe get some portion of that evidence that was previously unable to be seen by the naked eye,” Bordelon said. “It also gives witnesses or individuals who have video a platform to upload it so we can keep it in police chain of custody.”
Danielle Spearman, 5, and Aaliyah Robinson, 9 — both students at Turner Elementary School — died a week after the Oct. 13 fire from injuries sustained in the blaze. Three adults and three other children escaped.
One of the occupants, Marshavion Harris, 15, was arrested Friday night on two counts of second-degree in connection with the fire. Harris was supposed to be serving a sentence at the Johnny Robinson’s Boys Home in Monroe after being convicted of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. But he escaped on Aug. 29 and returned to Shreveport.
Investigators used the Axon technology to review body camera and cell phone footage taken the night of the fire. By adjusting the lighting and color of the footage, they were able to identify a suspect who was later determined to be a relative of the victims, Bordelon said.
“Initially, the fire department was the lead,” Bordelon said. “Once we began to investigate this in a homicide nature, that opened new leads. We were able to go back to some of the footage from that evening … and capture that individual on some of that body cam footage and some of the cell phone footage.”
Bordelon said the department received hundreds of tips through Caddo Crime Stoppers during the nine days following the fire. Officers had to sort through the information to separate credible leads from false reports.
“We were able to make that determination and realize this was not a random act of violence,” he said. “It happened much closer to home.”
The juvenile suspect had previously been in the custody of juvenile probation and parole authorities. Investigators are working with officials in the Monroe area to determine whether the teen had escaped or left custody before the incident.
Police are collaborating with the Caddo Parish District Attorney’s Office to determine how the case will be prosecuted. “There has been some talk of possible prosecution as an adult,” Bordelon said. “But ultimately that decision remains with the district attorney.”
The investigation continues in coordination with the Shreveport Fire Department, which is pursuing related arson charges.
Bordelon credited the community and Crime Stoppers with helping police make progress in the case. “Crime Stoppers is getting more tips than ever before and paying out more money than ever before,” he said. “It’s important that we do what we can to facilitate information with Crime Stoppers because we use them on a daily basis to solve crimes in our city.”
