‘He was manipulated by his aunt': Mother of child who gunned down Sonic worker speaks out, police arrest aunt

Authorities in Johnson County made another arrest Tuesday in the shooting death of Keene, Texas, Sonic employee Matthew Davis.

Law enforcement officers arrested Ashley Marmolejo on Wednesday in Keene, according to online jail records.

Marmolejo is charged with manslaughter in the deadly shooting where the gunman was a child.

Angel Gomez, Marmolejo, and their then-12-year-old nephew were at a Sonic Drive-In last May when Keene police say Gomez began causing a disturbance.

Gomez, 20 at the time, began urinating in the parking lot, according to charging documents.

Matthew Davis, 32, an employee at the restaurant, confronted Gomez, and the two began to fight.

Police say the 12-year-old boy then pulled out an assault-style rifle and fired six shots, hitting Davis several times.

Davis, who had a 10-year-old son, died later at the hospital.

The suspected gunman fled the scene and was later arrested in Rio Vista, according to police.

Police also arrested Gomez, and both he and the boy were charged with murder.

In October, a Johnson County jury found the boy ‘delinquent’ in Davis’ murder after seven hours of deliberation, the juvenile justice system equivalent of a murder conviction.

The boy’s punishment phase was postponed until November 1, 2023.

On Wednesday, a Johnson County judge began hearing non-expert testimony before preparing to issue his ruling.

The boy, who’s now 13 years old and who is not being publicly identified due to his age, faces up to 40 years in confinement.

His family and Davis gathered at the courthouse for the hearing, including the boy’s mother.

Lizette Gomez took the stand to describe her son, pleading for mercy from the judge in his sentencing.

“He didn’t mean to do it. He’s just a kid,” she said through tears.

Gomez claims her son was acting in self-defense and witnessed his uncle getting beaten up by the victim.

It is Marmolejo, Gomez insists, who bears most of the responsibility in the tragedy.

“He was manipulated by his aunt,” said Gomez. “He didn’t even know where the gun was. It was hiding under her chair, that’s when she got down and gave him the gun and told him: Hey, go shoot him.”

It is not clear what led authorities to arrest Marmolejo on Wednesday.

The bond has not been set. The gunman faces up to 40 years in confinement.

Seth Fuller is the boy’s defense attorney. Given his age, Fuller says his client would begin his sentence in the state’s juvenile justice division and then move into the adult prison system’s parole at age 18.

If the boy is sentenced to less than 10 years, Fuller says he could be granted probation.

Fuller is seeking probation in the case he calls ‘an all-around tragedy.’

“I’m asking for probation, and I think that would be appropriate given ‘family code,’” he said. “I know that if you just hear “murder,” there’s no doubt that this would not be a probation case, but the family code for juveniles this young is about rehabilitation, and I feel strongly that none of society would be served by putting this kid in the Texas Juvenile Justice Division.”

Fuller describes the case as ‘incredibly unique,’ “in that you can’t gauge it by other cases. This is probably the first murder case ever where we’re discussing skipping school in punishment.”

The boy’s defense team says he has no prior run-ins with police or a juvenile record, just ordinary school infractions.

Davis’ family declined NBC 5’s request for comment, saying they may speak when the trial ends.

The boy’s mother has a message for them.

“Like I told them, we’re really, really sorry,” said Gomez. “If I could do something to bring their son back, I [would].”

Both sides will return to the Guinn Justice Center at a later date to hear expert testimony, including a psychologist, before the judge decides how many years, if any, the boy will spend in confinement.