Nearly four years after two 20-year-old men were shot dead on a Kansas City street in broad daylight, brothers Marques Smith and Marquan Smith have been found guilty in connection with their deaths. The case traces back to a shooting just after 1 p.m. on a Tuesday near East 28th Street and Prospect Avenue that ended with officers chasing the pair through backyards before taking them into custody.
According to FOX4KC, Marques Smith and Marquan Smith were found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action and one count of unlawful use of a weapon stemming from the November 2022 killings in Kansas City. The station reports the brothers are now set to appear for sentencing on May 11, 2027. Court documents filed at the time of the shooting show the case originally proceeded on more serious charges: Jackson County prosecutors had charged each brother with two counts of first-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action and one count of unlawful use of a weapon, according to the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office.
A Daylight Shooting on Prospect Avenue
The shooting that killed Leerick Kelley and Montez L. Mack unfolded on November 22, 2022, at approximately 1:05 p.m., according to a probable cause statement filed by the Jackson County Prosecutor. Both men were found with apparent gunshot wounds near East 28th Street and Prospect Avenue, and medics pronounced them dead at the scene, the same court filing states. Prosecutors allege in the official complaint that the brothers knowingly discharged a firearm at Kelley and Mack during the encounter.
Per FOX4KC's report, the shooting was captured on city and neighborhood camera footage, helping investigators piece together what happened in the moments before officers arrived. The station's report also notes that Kelley and Mack were both 20 years old at the time of their deaths.
Fleeing Through Backyards With a Rifle
As Kansas City police officers responded to the scene, 911 callers reported that two men had fled the shooting, jumping fences and running behind houses from Prospect toward Lockridge Avenue, according to the court documents. Officers located the brothers running through a yard, with Marquan Smith holding an AR-style rifle, the prosecutor's filing states.
The pair kept running even as officers verbally ordered them to drop the weapon, per the same court record, before responding officers were able to capture and take both brothers into custody. Investigators later recovered 30 9mm shell casings believed to have been fired by the suspects, along with five .40-caliber casings near the scene, according to the probable cause statement.
Charges Filed the Day After the Killings
Marques Smith and Marquan Smith were charged the day after the murders, per FOX4KC's report. The following day, The Kansas City Star reported that both brothers were ordered held without bond in the Jackson County jail as the case moved forward.
Under Missouri law, second-degree murder is codified at RSMo Section 565.021, while armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon fall under RSMo Section 571.015 and RSMo Section 571.030, respectively. With the guilty findings now reported, the Smith brothers are scheduled to return to court for sentencing next spring.
