Develle Sprawls

Develle Sprawls, a 39-year-old Black man, was spending time with a longtime friend in the early morning hours of April 6, 2021. The two men were drinking together in the basement of a home in Chicago's Austin neighborhood on the West Side, a gathering that would end in tragedy.

The incident occurred around 3:30 a.m. at the residence on the 5400 block of West Flournoy Street, where Sprawls's friend, 37-year-old Marvin Browder, lived with his grandmother. According to prosecutors, an argument broke out between the two men in the basement. The dispute escalated, and Sprawls was shot multiple times. A blood trail suggested that after being wounded, Sprawls managed to crawl up the stairs from the basement into the kitchen. He was ultimately shot 14 times, with wounds to his head and chest, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

It was Marvin Browder who called the police, reporting that a man had been shot in his backyard. When officers arrived, they found Develle Sprawls lying in the yard, covered in blood. In his hand was a 9mm handgun that appeared to have been wiped clean. Investigators followed bloody drag marks from the yard back into the home's kitchen, where they discovered bullet holes and shell casings. More shell casings and live ammunition were found in the basement where the confrontation began.

Browder, who was uninjured and had no blood on him, was taken into custody. He initially told detectives that Sprawls had shot at him and that the gun went off during a struggle. He also claimed Sprawls had attacked him with a hammer found in the basement, but investigators found no blood on the tool, and Browder later changed his story, saying a hammer was not involved. Browder’s grandmother told officers she awoke to gunshots and saw her grandson in the kitchen asking Sprawls if he was all right.

Marvin Browder was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. At the time of the shooting, he was on federal pre-trial release for a separate gun charge. A judge ordered him held without bail. The case concluded when Marvin Browder pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder before Cook County Judge Kenneth Wadas. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison for killing his friend.