Chattanooga man guilty in 2020 homicide sentenced to 18 years

By Mason Edwards, Chattanooga Times Free Press

Staff photo by Abby White / Judge Barry Steelman, left, speaks with defense attorney Dan Ripper and his client Marvin Davis at a sentencing hearing June 30, 2025. Davis was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter in February.

A Chattanooga man was sentenced to 18 years in prison for a 2020 shooting that left one man dead -- a killing prosecutors described as "really disgusting, actually" and the defense insisted was a "one-off" from someone not going off on a crime spree.

Judge Barry Steelman imposed on the defendant, Marvin Jermane Davis, 51, 12 years for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and six years for voluntary manslaughter, to be served consecutively. Davis, who had been out on bail since August 2024 after nearly five years in pretrial custody, will get credit for time served, according to his defense attorney, Dan Ripper.

Davis was charged with first-degree murder after the death of Michael Williams, 32, occurred in a housing project on the rain-soaked afternoon of Jan 3, 2020. According to the prosecution, Davis unloaded his revolver -- paralyzing Williams -- and then beat Williams, who died four months later from his injuries.

Ripper argued his client's actions stemmed from fear and provocation -- a point he said jurors accepted when they found Davis guilty of voluntary manslaughter and not the first-degree murder the state originally sought. Ripper said that Davis is not someone the public should fear.

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Chattanooga man guilty in 2020 homicide sentenced to 18 years

"I don't think Mr. Davis set out here to violate the laws," Ripper said. "You have a circumstance where the victim, not saying the victim caused it, but provided circumstances under which it could happen."

(READ MORE: Hamilton County prosecutor opens murder trial: 'He shot until the gun was empty')

Assistant District Attorney Jason Demastus asked the court to weigh the apparent cruelty of the crime as shown in the surveillance video in sentencing.

"The shooting occurred, the victim, by the video, appeared to be disabled, unable to move his legs, was crawling around grasping at the defendant, and the defendant just continued striking him with the barrel of the gun," Demastus said. "There was no hesitation. He kept firing until he achieved the result that he wanted."

While Demastus did not want to diminish the jury's time, effort and consideration put into the case, he maintained that the state's position during and after the trial is that Davis should be charged with premeditated murder. He said when considering the time between Davis obtaining the murder weapon and the fact that the video showed the victim shying away from the defendant, this case lends "itself to at least a second, if not first-degree ... as it was indicted."

Steelman said that while the court was pleased with Davis' conduct on bail, the court gave significant weight to his criminal history: 21 misdemeanor, non-traffic offenses spanning decades, most involving drugs and intoxication, but there were also a few violent crimes, he said. Davis allegedly told a presentencing investigator he used marijuana recently and could not pass a drug test.

"That's concerning to the court because the defendant has, as evidenced by his criminal record, a longstanding history of drug abuse that had led to criminal convictions and is being in and out of the courts, even since he was a juvenile," Steelman said.

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The judge also said the location of the crime -- a public housing project -- affected Davis' sentencing. But the judge did not find it as influential as the fact that Davis was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to prior aggravated assault and attempted aggravated burglary charges.

When Steelman announced the sentence, members of the Harris and Davis families cried out. As officers handcuffed Davis, he turned to his family members and told them he loved them.

Ripper said he expects the case to be appealed. Demastus declined to comment until after the appeals process finished.