Detectives with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau declined to give any specifics Friday as to why they issued an early-morning alert regarding a 2023 shooting investigation that had previously been assigned to a “cold case” unit.
It’s been two and a half years since Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies found Devin Marshall, 37, shot and bleeding to death outside his home near Vista Valencia Golf Course.
He later died at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital from his wounds.
“The reason that the Nixle was put out today is because we’re reminding the public that this is still an ongoing investigation and we’re looking for any lead or any information that folks might have to point us in the right direction,” Lt. Chris Oakley of the Homicide Bureau said in a phone call with The Signal on Friday.
In addition to a photo of murder victim Devin Marshall, detectives issued a screenshot of surveillance footage they believed to be linked to the murder.
The night of his death, deputies found Marshall bleeding inside his Toyota Rav4 and administered first aid before he was taken to the hospital.
Homicide Bureau detectives previously have only identified one “person of interest,” Vincent Williams, a man who knew Marshall and was in a bar fight with him weeks before the murder.
Williams was arrested in the hours after Marshall’s murder as he returned to his home on Vista Fairway near the murder scene.
A previous homicide investigator described WIllliams as a man who “returned to the scene” the morning of the shooting while deputies were still processing the scene.
He was released two days later due to a lack of evidence, according to LASD records available online.
Oakley said after speaking with the detectives leading the investigation — listed only by their last names, Brown and Giles, in the LASD alert — detectives were still looking for evidence.
“The person that was arrested in the past was released that same day,” Oakley said. “We were not able to tie him to the incident.”
Evidence gathered by detectives, presented to a judge in a previous search-warrant request, showed the two walking together minutes before Marshall’s truck is seen slowly rolling into another parked car, according to security footage detectives obtained.
Neighbors awakened by a commotion recalled hearing three gunshots, which is also noted in the search warrant detectives filed.
In the previous warrant request, detectives laid out their suspected timeline of events leading up to Marshall’s murder but also said they’re still looking for more information.
Anyone with information can contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips may be submitted through Crime Stoppers by calling (800) 222-TIPS (8477), using P3 Tips mobile app, or visiting lacrimestoppers.org.
