Hopewell Police arrest two men in connection with December 2022 shooting death of child
HOPEWELL – The mother of the little girl killed last December in Hopewell had strong words for the two men arrested this week in her daughter’s death.
“I’m lost and I’m all over the place, and I’m not so forgiving these days,” Taylor told The Progress-Index Friday afternoon. “I hope they get everything they got coming to them.”
Jamari Antonio Taylor, 20, of Hopewell, and Rayquan Latrel Harvell, 18, of Chesterfield County, were indicted Tuesday on charges of first-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Taylor also was indicted on conspiracy to commit murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Eight-year-old P’Aris Mi-Unique Moore was shot once in the chest on Dec. 30, 2022, as she played in the front yard of a relative’s house on Freeman Street in Hopewell’s Arlington area. She died later at TriCities Hospital in Hopewell.
Witnesses told police they had seen a light-colored four-door sedan speeding through the neighborhood around the time that the little girl was shot.
Even though she has the same last name as one of the suspects, Brionna Taylor said she did not know who either of them were. She did have strong words for them, however, in her Facebook reaction to the arrests, saying that "Hell gotta special seat for y'all devilish no care for life [people]."
"This just the beginning & y'all mamas know y'all was up to some, too [sic]," she wrote.
Both men are being held without bond in Riverside Regional Jail in Prince George County. A hearing is set for 9 a.m. Wednesday in Hopewell Circuit Court.
In a statement announcing the arrests, deputy police chief Donald Reid said he was “thankful” for the work done by the entire department and the commonwealth’s attorney’s office. On Tuesday, Commonwealth’s Attorney Rick Newman said a grand jury handed up indictments in the girl’s death and two other high-profile homicides.
Thursday, police arrested Jerrell Armani Crawley, 27, of Petersburg, in connection with the May 2022 shooting death of 27-year-old Deanthony Davis, also of Petersburg, in the parking lot of Carter G. Woodson Middle School.
The other indictment is for the Thanksgiving night 2019 murder of Richmond Fire Lt. Ashley Berry in a drive-by shooting on Sunnyside Avenue. The suspect in that case has not yet been apprehended.
“We remain proud of our community, and all who provided valuable information to assist in this investigation,” Reid said on the arrests of Taylor and Harvell.
The P’Aris Moore case has been in the news lately for a civil suit Brionna Taylor brought against Hopewell City Councilor Dominic Holloway last June. In that suit, she claimed Holloway took $5,600 from a GoFundMe account he set up for the child’s family to pay child support. Holloway has denied the accusation.
More: Judge continues GoFundMe suit against Hopewell councilor after issues with serving warrant
Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Two men arrested in 2022 death of Hopewell child
