Man faces new charges after drive-by shooting at Idaho Falls park
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IDAHO FALLS — More charges have been filed against a man accused of firing a gun at parked cars in Tautphaus Park.
Jeremy Duane Marston, 37, faces four aggravated assault charges with a deadly weapon enhancement. The Boise man was arrested July 30, after police were called to the park around 9:30 p.m. for reports of shots fired near the skate park.
RELATED | Man arrested after drive-by shooting at Idaho Falls park
Earlier that evening, Marston was allegedly at Tautphaus Park with a female relative when he got into an argument with a group of men who made “gang signs” at him, according to court documents obtained by EastIdahoNews.com.
“The group of people said…he should leave before they … ‘let these things ring,’ which (the female relative) said was referencing guns,” court documents say.
Martson got into an argument with one particular man, who apparently threatened him. Martson then left that park.
He and the woman returned later with a gun. According to the report, when Marston arrived in a vehicle he began shooting at the man he had argued with. The man, and a child who was with him, hid behind a parked vehicle.
“After seeing (the man) return to the park and get out of his vehicle, Jeremy Marston pulled a handgun and started shooting in the direction of (the man),” an affidavit of probable cause says. “During the shooting, Jeremy shot a blue Pontiac that was occupied by (three people).” That vehicle had two teenage girls inside.
Marston also shot the man’s vehicle and an unoccupied green Subaru twice, according to police. Court documents show he confessed in an interview to officers and on a recorded jail phone call that he fired shots at the park.
No one was injured in the shooting.
After the gunshots, Marston and the woman drove off. They ended up on Sunnyside Heights Lane and exited the vehicle. The woman told police she hid behind a bush “because she was so scared.” Marston ran the other direction with the gun, police say.
Officers found the woman, who told them Marston might act aggressively when they apprehended him. Detectives traced his phone and found him on Hartert Drive near the park.
“Jeremy didn’t have a shirt on, no shoes and his pants were wet,” court documents say. “Jeremy told (police) he had been sleeping on someone’s couch but this was an obvious lie due to his current state.”
Marston didn’t have the weapon when he was found and arrested. He asked for an attorney but then later agreed to speak with police because he didn’t want to go to jail and possibly lose his job.
Marston attempted to make a deal. He offered to help police find the weapon if he would only be charged with unlawful discharge of a firearm.
Police refused to bargain. Marston then told police he had only two fired warning shots in the air after seeing the man go to the trunk of his vehicle. Marston didn’t have an explanation for how the vehicles were hit by gunfire if he had shot into the air. The officer then explained to Martson that the angle of the shots all indicated they came from his vehicle.
Marston was taken to the Bonneville County Jail and charged with unlawful discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle. He initially posted a $50,000 bond but was arrested again on the new charges. This time bond was set at $500,000. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Aug. 21.