It might be hard, but for many, forgetting Darrent Williams’ senseless murder on New Years morning back in 2007 is much easier than remembering.
The tough memories of Willie Clark and another assailant driving by and opening fire on Williams’ limousine and hitting the Denver Broncos cornerback with a fatal shot through the neck still roam in the deep dark crevasses of our minds.
The story’s forever been murky with different versions of it mudding up the details and complicating an already hard to comprehend slaying. While much of the story has been focused on what ensued to lead to the death, and how it all transpired, one detail appeared to be clear; Williams died in Javon Walker’s arms, as explained in multiple reports, including a Sports Illustrated story back in 2011. Famous became Walker’s blood-stained t-shirt that he hadn’t cleaned since the incident.
All of that appears to have been embellished, though, as forensic evidence shows that Williams dropped into the seat next to him, on top of a young woman, who then moved to the next seat to her right as Williams’ neck-wound bled out on the empty limo seat. The young cornerback, full of potential, was in no one’s arms as the limo pulled over and friends began to drag him out of the vehicle.
Though the blood on Walker’s shirt was never tested, based on the rest of the evidence, detectives suspect that it did not come from Williams, but rather from Nicole Reindl, one of the two other injured victims of the shooting. Reindl was a miraculous survivor as a bullet grazed her head and was lodged near her skull. While it’s not clear exactly how his shirt was bloodied, what is clear is that the blood did not come from the body of Darrent Williams during his final breaths.
All this was explained by former homicide detective Jon Priest last Wednesday night in Parker, CO. as part of a series called “A Night with the Coroner,” put on by Lora Thomas. Priest was a key forensic expert in Williams’ trial with his expertise on the bullets trajectories. He even drove the limousine that was shot-up away from the crime scene.
While explaining the story in detail and going over the specifics of such an intricate case, Priest was able to give several insights. Clark and another shooter unleashed two guns on the limousine while looking for Brandon Marshall, who was—by all accounts—Clark’s main target. Clark was guilty of at least another murder of a key witness, and this investigation was tied to 11 other murders involving him and the “Tre Tre” Crip gang he was affiliated with.
Williams was in many ways a bystander, obviously involved to some extent as Marshall’s group that night, but little more than that. As the wide receiver’s limousine went one way, Williams’ went the other, and that’s the Hummer limousine that Clark followed and opened fire on. Darrent’s blood alcohol was of 0.051, well below the legal limit, despite it being 2:15 am on New Year’s morning after a long night of clubbing.
Many other interesting details were shared by Priest, who was thorough and very direct in his recounting, focusing on the facts of the murder that occurred and what findings were obtained to solve a very public and complicated case.
Above all, though, what stood out was that there was no silver lining or juicy brotherhood story as some have tried to depict. Williams was in a limousine he paid for, surrounded by friends who he’d flown into town, and in his final moments, he laid on the limo seats alone without Walker or anyone else holding him tightly or trying to cover his wounds.
It’s just another harrowing detail in a true tragedy that affected the lives of many. None more than Williams who at 24 then, is still missed 10 years later and Clark who will spend the rest of his days incarcerated while Brandon Marshall still plays in the NFL.
While recounts by Walker and others may always vary, the forensic evidence can prove that much.
