Steve Perkins: Shooting, Marquette Murder Case, and Federal Lawsuit

Steve Perkins was a 39-year-old Black man shot and killed by a Decatur, Alabama, police officer in his own front yard just before 2:00 a.m. on September 29, 2023, during a vehicle repossession that police had no legal authority to assist with. The officer who fired, Mac Bailey Marquette, was indicted for murder in January 2024. His immunity claim is pending before the Alabama Supreme Court, which heard oral arguments on January 28, 2026, and his murder trial is currently scheduled for September 21, 2026. A federal wrongful death lawsuit filed by Perkins’ widow is still active against Marquette after other defendants were dismissed.

What Happened That Night

A tow truck driver named Caleb Combs, working for All-Star Recovery, went to Perkins’ home on Ryan Drive in southwest Decatur to repossess his pickup. On his first attempt, Combs reported that Perkins came outside and pointed a handgun at his chest. Combs left and called police, saying he would not return alone.¹

Three Decatur officers responded: Marquette, Joey Williams, and Christopher Mukadam. Sergeant Vance Summers was also involved. They described their role as a “civil escort” to “keep the peace” while Combs tried again. When they arrived, all three officers positioned themselves out of sight of the front door as Combs approached the truck.¹

When Perkins came out of his house, Marquette rounded the corner, shouted “Police, get on the ground,” and then fired roughly 17 rounds almost immediately. Perkins was struck multiple times. The Morgan County coroner ruled his death a homicide caused by multiple gunshot wounds. Perkins never fired his weapon. Investigators found his handgun with an empty chamber and a depressed trigger. According to a witness, the tow truck driver removed the vehicle from the property after the shooting but before an ambulance arrived.¹²³

Why Police Shouldn’t Have Been There

Alabama law bars officers from assisting in a vehicle repossession without a court order. No order was issued in this case. The Decatur City Clerk confirmed no judicial process authorizing police involvement was issued between midnight and 2:00 a.m. that night.³

State investigators later found the officers “exceeded the scope” of their responsibilities by accompanying the tow truck driver back to the property. Morgan County Judge Charles Elliot, ruling on Marquette’s immunity claim, went further: because the officers never contacted Perkins about any criminal matter, their presence at the side of his house amounted to trespassing.¹⁴

The legitimacy of the repossession itself was also disputed. Perkins’ family said he was current on his payments and that no valid repossession order existed. Their attorney noted the family later retrieved the truck from All-Star Recovery without paying any fines or fees, which he called unusual for a lawful repossession. Lien documents cited in court, however, indicated the creditor authorized the repo because Perkins was months behind on payments.⁵⁶

What the Body Camera Footage Showed

Body camera video was presented in court during Marquette’s immunity hearing in March 2025 and released publicly. Attorneys used the tactical light beam from Perkins’ handgun, visible on the video, to trace where it was pointing moment by moment. When Perkins first came outside, the beam appeared to point toward the tow truck driver. As Marquette came around the corner, it appeared to swing toward the officer. In the frames just before Marquette opened fire, the light pointed upward against the side of the house and away from the officer. Prosecutors argued this suggested Perkins may have been raising his arms to surrender.⁷

A state law enforcement expert, Agent Jamie King, testified that while the video may confirm the officers’ claim that Perkins briefly pointed a gun in Marquette’s direction, it also showed the officers had positioned themselves in a way that made a violent confrontation more likely rather than less. King said the officers were not effectively positioned to keep the peace or investigate any criminal complaint because they stayed concealed from Perkins until seconds before the shooting.⁸

The Murder Case Against Mac Marquette

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency turned its investigation over to Morgan County District Attorney Scott Anderson in late December 2023. A grand jury indicted Marquette on a murder charge on January 5, 2024, and cleared the three other officers of criminal wrongdoing. Marquette, 23 at the time, was released on $30,000 bond and pleaded not guilty. Anderson said federal authorities were continuing to review the case and additional charges remained possible.⁹¹⁰

The Immunity Fight

Marquette’s defense sought immunity from prosecution under Alabama’s “stand your ground” law, which can shield a defendant from trial entirely if a judge finds the use of force was legally justified. After a two-day hearing in March 2025, Judge Elliot denied immunity on March 31, 2025. He found Marquette was “acting outside the scope of his authority and therefore a trespasser” while hiding at the side of the house, and he concluded that whether the officers were legitimately keeping the peace or unlawfully assisting a repossession was a factual question for a jury.⁴

Marquette’s attorneys appealed to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, calling the ruling a “gross abuse of discretion.” In August 2025, that court upheld the denial, while noting Marquette could still pursue a self-defense claim at trial.¹¹

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall filed a brief in July 2025 arguing Marquette should face trial. The brief said there were “open questions” about whether Marquette had any legal right to be at the Perkins residence and that a jury was “alone in the best position to determine the trustworthiness of testimony” from the officers involved.⁸

Marquette appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court, which heard oral arguments on January 28, 2026. No ruling had been issued as of that date. The murder trial has been rescheduled multiple times and is currently set for September 21, 2026, contingent on resolution of the appeal.¹²¹³

The Federal Wrongful Death Lawsuit

In December 2023, Perkins’ widow, Catrela Perkins, filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against the City of Decatur, the four officers involved, and employees of All-Star Recovery, alleging excessive force, wrongful death, and unconstitutional policing practices. An amended complaint in February 2025 alleged the Decatur Police Department used a performance-tracking system called “Stats” to determine pay, promotions, and assignments, and that it incentivized officers to escalate encounters rather than de-escalate them.¹⁴

U.S. District Judge Corey Maze narrowed the case significantly. He dismissed all claims against the City of Decatur, finding the plaintiff did not identify a city policy specific enough to put officers on notice their conduct was unacceptable. He also dismissed claims against officers Mukadam, Williams, and Summers on immunity grounds. Marquette remains a defendant. The court denied his motion to dismiss the wrongful death and excessive force claims, ruling that based on the facts as alleged, Perkins was not posing a serious threat or attempting to flee when he was shot, so Marquette was not entitled to qualified immunity.¹⁵¹⁶

The claims against All-Star Recovery took a separate path. Judge Maze granted a motion to compel arbitration, ruling that the Better Business Bureau of North Alabama must determine whether the wrongful death claims fall within the scope of an arbitration agreement in Perkins’ original truck purchase contract. The BBB initially declined to arbitrate, saying the wrongful death claim exceeded its dispute resolution capabilities.¹⁷

Fallout Inside the Decatur Police Department

Administrative consequences moved faster than the criminal case. In December 2023, Mayor Tab Bowling fired three of the four officers involved and suspended the fourth. The city initially declined to name them publicly, but court and news records identified them as Marquette, Mukadam, Williams, and Summers. Former Police Chief Todd Pinion determined that department policies had been violated. The fired officers appealed to the Decatur Personnel Board, and all three were ultimately dismissed following personnel hearings.¹⁸⁸

Chief Pinion stepped down in February 2025 after sustained calls for his resignation from community members and at least one city council member. He did not leave city employment entirely, moving to a captain’s role to conduct special investigations. Nadis Carlisle, Jr. was named interim chief.¹⁹²⁰

What Changed in Decatur

In May 2024, the Decatur City Council passed an ordinance requiring tow truck operators to notify the police department 30 minutes before a planned vehicle repossession, a direct response to the circumstances of Perkins’ death.²¹

In July 2024, the City Council contracted with Green Research and Technology, a Huntsville-based threat assessment firm, for an independent review of department procedures. The 43-page report, released in January 2025, found that internal communication within the department had broken down, that command staff had “over-shadowed” the chief’s authority, and that the system for tracking civilian complaints was “inefficient and ineffective.” An Excel spreadsheet used to log informal complaints held 92 entries from 2023 and 2024, including allegations of excessive force and unlawful arrests that had not been properly tracked through the department’s formal system. The report also noted that some complaints could not be fully investigated because body camera footage had been miscategorized and deleted. The review explicitly excluded the Perkins shooting and other matters in litigation.²²

1
NBC News. New Body Camera Video Shows Moments Alabama Police Fatally Shoot Armed Man
2
Capital B News. Questions Surround Death of Black Man Shot by Police During Car Repossession
3
Yahoo News. Attorney Says Police Assistance in Repo of Steve Perkins’ Truck Was Illegal
4
WHNT News. Judge Finds Former Decatur Police Officer Mac Marquette Did Not Act in Self-Defense
5
WAFF. Steve Perkins Family Retrieve Repossessed Car; Legal Team Says It Should Have Been Evidence
6
AL.com. Decatur Police Officer Failed to Prove He Killed Steve Perkins in Self-Defense, Judge Rules
7
AL.com. Decatur Police Body Cam Footage of Steve Perkins Shooting Death Shown in Court
8
AL.com. Alabama Attorney General Pushes for Ex-Decatur Police Officer to Face Murder Trial
9
PBS NewsHour. Former Alabama Police Officer Charged With Murder in Shooting of Black Man
10
Courthouse News Service. Alabama Police Officer Charged With Murder for September 2023 Shooting
11
WAFF. Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals Rejects Attempt to Toss Ex-Decatur Cop’s Murder Charge
12
Spectrum News. Alabama Supreme Court Hears Marquette Immunity Appeal
13
1819 News. Murder Trial Pushed Back for Former Decatur Officer Accused in Stephen Perkins Shooting Death
14
WAFF. Widow of Steve Perkins Files Amended Lawsuit, Cites Police System in Fatal Shooting
15
AL.com. Several Officers Dismissed From Wrongful Death Lawsuit in North Alabama
16
WHNT News. Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against 3 Officers, City in Stephen Perkins Shooting Death
17
Yahoo News. Tow Truck Company in Perkins Wrongful Death Lawsuit
18
WAFF. ALEA Turns Over Findings Following Officer-Involved Shooting Death of Steve Perkins
19
WAAY-TV. Interim Decatur Police Chief Describes New Role Following Todd Pinion’s Resignation
20
AL.com. Decatur Police Chief Says He Will Resign So City Can Begin Healing
21
Alabama Reflector. One Year After Decatur Man’s Death at Hands of Police, Activism and Legal Battles Continue
22
News From the States. Decatur Police Department Review Calls for Improved Communication, Complaints Process