Ex-MPD officer to serve 1 year in prison over fatal crash

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Former Memphis police officer Antonio Marshall was given a five-year sentence Tuesday after pleading guilty to vehicular homicide in the 2021 high-speed chase that killed two people.

Marshall will only serve one of those years in prison—the four remaining years will be spent on probation.

The sentence came after hours of victim impact statements from the family of the victims.

“I don’t understand how you kill two people and you only got six months for each person in jail,” said Derrick Parham, the cousin of both victims. “He shouldn’t have had any probation at all.”

Blake Ballin, who represented Marshall, said he felt it was a fair sentence.

“Nobody is going to be totally happy,” Ballin said. “But I think in time, the family and Marshall will each see this was a fair sentence.”

But the family of 19-year-old Travis Parham and 42-year-old Wallace Morris said they don’t think the sting will sweeten.

“These Tennessee laws need to be changed to give equal punishment for everybody,” said Parham. “He should have to have to do 12 years. That man took two lives.”

Marshall will also lose his license for some time.

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