CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – A 19-year-old woman is dead after she was mistakenly shot during an altercation on the 1500 block of Cedar Springs Circle.
The shooting occurred Sunday at 12:55 a.m.
When police arrived, they found that 19-year-old Ashley Ashworth from Clarksville had been shot in the head. She was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center with serious injuries. Police said she died Monday morning.
Witnesses gave police a description of the suspect and his vehicle and he was taken into custody for questioning soon after. He has been identified as 19-year-old Demarkus Ely from Mobile, AL.
Police said this was not a random shooting. Ely had an altercation with an individual (shooter’s intended target) at this residence and shot Ashworth instead of his intended target. Ashworth and the targeted person were near each other at the time of the shooting.
Ely’s arrest warrant says that during an interview, he admitted to getting into an argument at a party and firing two “warning shots” toward the crowd, ultimately striking the victim.
Police found the firearm inside Ely’s vehicle.
Ely was initially charged with aggravated assault and his bond was set at $1,000,000. A warrant has been issued for Demarkus Ely with the new charge of criminal homicide.