A quiet Sunday in Northeast El Paso turned chaotic when police say a 32-year-old man opened fire with a rifle on a residential street, rattling families in the neighborhood. Officers were called to the 5800 block of Devontry Drive, near McCombs Street and U.S. 54, after residents reported gunshots and later shared home-security video that appeared to show a man firing multiple rounds. By the time patrol cars cleared the area, neighbors were still on edge as investigators tried to sort out what exactly set off the disturbance.
Police account and charges
According to the El Paso Police Department, officers responded to a deadly-conduct call in the 5800 block of Devontry Drive and found that the suspect, identified as Daton Mareham, had allegedly fired a rifle in the neighborhood. Investigators say Mareham then ran through two separate backyards and tried to get into homes through their back doors before officers caught up with him.
Police say they found suspected cocaine on Mareham at the time of his arrest. Jail records list him on two counts of criminal trespass with a deadly weapon, one count of deadly conduct — discharge of a firearm — and one count of possession of a controlled substance. His bond was set at $38,500, according to KFOX.
Where he's being held
Mareham was booked into the El Paso County Downtown Detention Facility at 601 E. Overland Ave. The downtown lockup also houses magistrate courts, the warrants section, and intake operations for county arrests, according to El Paso County.
What the law says
Under Texas law, "deadly conduct" can cover situations where someone knowingly fires a gun at or toward a person or an occupied building, a statute prosecutors often reach for when shots ring out in a neighborhood. Criminal trespass is a separate charge that can be upgraded when a deadly weapon is involved. Those provisions are spelled out in the Texas Penal Code; see Penal Code §22.05 and Penal Code §30.05.
Video and local context
Video of the incident was shared on the Instagram account @therealfitfamelpaso, where it quickly picked up views and was incorporated into local news coverage, giving residents a close-up look at the tense moments on Devontry Drive. Police say the investigation is ongoing and that no further details were immediately available, according to KFOX.
The arrest comes amid other scattered reports of late-night gunfire across El Paso neighborhoods this year, a pattern echoed in recent gunfire mystery coverage, as per Hoodline.
