Maribel Estrada Verazquez, a 41-year-old Hispanic woman, was fatally shot on February 24, 2005, outside the Smith County Courthouse in Tyler, Texas. She had been at the courthouse for a hearing related to her ex-husband’s failure to pay child support after their 2004 divorce. Estrada was shot in the head and killed instantly as she and her 23-year-old son, David Hernandez Arroyo Jr., approached the courthouse.

Her ex-husband, David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., ambushed them with an AK-47 assault rifle. He wounded his son in the leg, then engaged responding officers in a shootout, wounding several. A local resident, Mark Alan Wilson, who tried to protect Estrada’s son, was fatally shot by Arroyo. Arroyo fled, exchanged more gunfire during a high-speed chase that ended on Highway 271 North, and was ultimately killed by responding officers.

Estrada’s family described her as gentle and quiet, focused on meeting bills and caring for her children. The community held a funeral and public memorial for Mark Wilson. Anyone with information about the shooting or who knew Maribel Estrada is asked to share what they can.