Texas Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for Killing Boy and Stepfather
In a grave and tragic case, a Texas gang member has been handed a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Desmond Hawkins, aged 23, was found guilty of a horrifying crime committed in 2020. He fatally shot 11-year-old Dominic Suicek and his stepfather, 41-year-old Menuell Solomon, while they were sitting in their car outside their home.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, expressing the gravity of the situation, stated, “A little boy with his whole life ahead of him was murdered because of a cold-blooded ambush in broad daylight. This was a capital murder, and the appropriate sentence is life in prison without parole.”
Now, let’s take a step back to understand the full extent of this tragedy. At the time of this horrifying incident, Hawkins was already facing a bond for another capital murder case dating back to October 10, 2016. In that previous case, Hawkins was arrested for fatally shooting John Pye during a robbery, and it’s noteworthy that the two men were acquainted.
Remarkably, even after being released on bond for the 2016 case, Hawkins was wearing an ankle monitor equipped with GPS technology to track his whereabouts. Shockingly, it was while wearing this monitor that he committed the 2020 murders.
GPS data from the monitor revealed that Hawkins had been waiting for Solomon to return home on the day of the murder. He even cut a hole in a chain-linked fence to reach Solomon more quickly. Hawkins waited for at least three hours for Solomon to arrive.
A week prior to the murder, Solomon had reported to the police an attempt on his life. An unknown assailant had fired shots at him while he was in his Mercedes-Benz parked in his driveway.
On that fateful day, as Solomon backed into his driveway with his young stepson, Hawkins emerged from the fence’s hole and opened fire, hitting Suicek twice and Solomon four times. Both victims tragically died almost instantly.
Surveillance footage from nearby cameras captured Hawkins ambushing the vehicle while he was still wearing the ankle monitor. The motive behind Hawkins’ targeting of Solomon remains unknown.
Following a two-week trial, jurors were presented with substantial evidence that led to a swift conviction for capital murder. Immediately after the conviction, Hawkins was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Assistant District Attorney Christopher Condon commented on the case, saying, “Based on what we saw in the evidence, we believe this was an orchestrated hit. The jury did the right thing in handing down a conviction for capital murder.”
Assistant District Attorney Nancy Ta, who also prosecuted the case, emphasized that the evidence demonstrated premeditation. She stated, “The defendant laid in wait for three hours, during the light of day, to execute a young boy and his stepfather. Hawkins made a decision to end Dominic’s life before the boy could even turn 12, and now 12 citizens of Harris County have decided how Hawkins will spend the rest of his.”