A man formerly residing in Portsmouth was sentenced Friday to 23 years in prison for a shooting that tore through an ugly sweater Christmas party in December 2023, killing one guest and wounding two others, including a man in a wheelchair. Marquise Bunn received a 43-year sentence with 20 years suspended, leaving him with 23 years to serve after a jury convicted him in June of second-degree murder and use of a firearm.
According to WAVY-TV, Bunn was found guilty after a four-day jury trial on June 1. The station reports Bunn attended the party as the host's cousin, arriving with his girlfriend, Carmen Prescott, and his sister. Bunn's case was also covered by WTKR, which described it as a triple shooting tied to the same Christmas gathering.
Accounts of the exact date differ. The Virginian-Pilot reported the party and shooting took place on Dec. 23, 2023, while an earlier police-related Pilot report described it as a Christmas Eve shooting on Dec. 24. Either way, the violence erupted at a party meant for sweaters and holiday cheer, not gunfire.
A Fight Spirals Into Gunfire
Per the station's report, a fight broke out at the gathering, and 43-year-old Antonio Wolfe — believing it was serious — tried to break it up. The homeowner asked everyone to leave, but the same account notes one person got out of a car and resumed fighting with Wolfe, reigniting the chaos.
An uninvolved partygoer who uses a wheelchair then shot the instigator, ending that fight; the attacker survived. That is when, per the same account, Bunn shot the man in the wheelchair before turning his gun on Wolfe and firing six shots. Four of the shots struck Wolfe, with one hitting him in the back; the Daily Press, however, reported that four shots struck Wolfe in the back. Wolfe died at the scene, according to the Pilot's earlier report. The man in the wheelchair was seriously injured but survived, as did the initial attacker.
Days on the Run Before Arrest
Bunn and Prescott fled the scene and spent the following days hiding out in hotels and homes to avoid police, according to the Daily Press. Police eventually arrested Bunn during a search of a Portsmouth home, where investigators recovered a magazine loaded with bullets that matched shell casings found at the crime scene.
Testimony described at trial added more detail to the case against Bunn. An inmate testified that Bunn admitted to him that he had shot both Wolfe and the man in the wheelchair, the same outlet reported. Separately, per the station's coverage, Bunn told Prescott to put the gun in a black bag and hide it at a family member's house.
Girlfriend Faces Separate Charges
Prescott was indicted on charges of accessory after the fact to murder and concealment of evidence in connection with the aftermath of the shooting. A grand jury returned those charges, but as of the latest reporting, her trial date has not been scheduled, leaving that part of the case still unresolved.
