9th Tacoma Homicide of 2020: Deon McGhee
On the evening of March 25th, 21-year-old Deon McGhee told a 28-year-old acquaintance he had met that day through a friend that he could get him some Xanax for $300. The man agreed and got into a car with Deon driving and Deon’s uncle in the backseat. The man transferred $300 electronically to Deon, but Deon didn’t see it in his account and asked the man to do it again. The man did this a total of three times, transferring a total of $900 to Deon’s account. The man then stabbed Deon in the neck. The car crashed in the 1000 block of North Villard Street. Upon impact the three men ran in three different directions. Deon stumbled to a nearby porch and sat. Police arrived and tried CPR. Paramedics showed up, but Deon died before he arrived at the hospital becoming the ninth Tacoma homicide this year.
Deon’s alleged killer was arrested and charged with first degree murder shortly after.
I was unable to find much information on Deon McGhee beyond his activities on the final day of his life. At 21-years of age he was too young for anyone to know what sort of person he might have ended up becoming. What we know is that Tacoma has lost another young resident to homicidal violence. I know there are those who will just dismiss this as another drug deal gone wrong and ignore the tragedy of the loss of life, but personally I subscribe to the theory that everyone is more than their worst actions. And having written about Tacoma homicides of all sorts of individuals over the year, I can say with certainty that every single person has someone who loves them and someone who will never be the same if that person is taken from them.
As always, the comments section is reserved for friends and family of Deon McGhee who might want to share thoughts or memories of him. And if you have a photo of him you’d like to share, please email it to me at jackcameornis@gmail.com.
Jack