On the late morning of March 12, 2021, 20-year-old Demarcus A. Cokley was sitting on a porch in the 1800 block of Hovland Court in Evanston when someone walked up and opened fire. Three people were struck; Cokley and 21-year-old Jose Francisco Sanchez-Guerrero were taken to Evanston Hospital and pronounced dead shortly after arrival. An 18-year-old Evanston resident identified by local reporting as Kyle Wilson survived after treatment.

Police logged the call at 11:46 a.m., applied a tourniquet to the surviving victim at the scene, and later said evidence pointed to a shooter or shooters approaching on foot rather than a drive-by. Early reports described a suspect fleeing north across Emerson Street and a man in a dark hoodie and gray sweatpants, while investigators said the shooting may have been targeted. The North Regional Major Crimes Task Force joined Evanston detectives, and no arrests had been announced in the immediate aftermath.

Friends and family created memorial pages and fundraisers after Cokley’s death. If anyone was on Hovland Court that day or has information about who approached the porch, please share what is known with Evanston police.