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A Maryland funeral director is facing charges after he opened fire at a burial service for a 10-year-old girl, who was killed in a separate shooting.
On Friday (February 14), Prince George's County State Attorney's Office announced that Wilson Chavis, 50, was found guilty of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a pallbearer at a funeral for Arianna Davis, 10, per PEOPLE.
The shooting unfolded on June 6, 2023, when Chavis went to the Washington National Cemetery, while his funeral home, Compassion and Serenity, was hosting a burial for Davis, who was fatally shot earlier that year.
According to authorities, Chavis got into a confrontation with two people from another funeral home that he had a long-standing business dispute with. When funeral attendees confronted Chavis about his behavior, he allegedly pulled out a gun and opened fire.
The shooting left Ronald Banks, a 30-year-old pallbearer, dead and a second victim injured. Chavis fled the scene but was later picked up during a traffic stop.
“The saddest part about that day was that the mother of Arianna Davis said she never got to see her daughter be buried and lowered into the ground,” Assistant State’s Attorney William Porter said in a statement. “Someone had to tell her where her daughter was buried later.”
Chavis was also convicted of the use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence in connection to the incident. His sentencing is set for July 11.
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