Chattanooga Police Department, in conjunction with the United States Marshals Service (USMS), arrested Demetre Tayshaun Isaac, 29, in connection with the homicide of Michael Buttram. The homicide occurred on April 12, in the 1700 block of Reggie White Boulevard in a parking lot near the skate park.
On April 12, at 2:57 a.m., Chattanooga Police responded to a person shot in the 1700 block of Reggie White Boulevard. When officers arrived, they found Michael Buttram, 21, with life-threatening injuries.
Chattanooga Fire and Hamilton County EMS responded to the scene.
EMS transported him to a local hospital. Mr. Buttram died at the hospital.
CPD's Homicide Unit responded to conduct the criminal investigation. CPD's Crime Scene Unit responded to process the crime scene.
During the initial investigation, the detectives spoke with multiple witnesses who provided information about the incident. The preliminary investigation revealed a large group of people left Southside Social after it closed and went to a parking lot near the skate park.
Most of the group were focused on two vehicles. Three men were in an argument near those vehicles, including Demetre Isaac. One of the men in the argument had a handgun in his waistband. Isaac took the gun from the other man's waistband.
The victim, Michael Buttram, was not involved in the argument. He attempted to help the man get the gun back from Isaac when he was shot. The suspect and others left the scene prior to when officers arrived.
Through the investigation, Detective Abbett and others in the Homicide Unit were able to identify the suspect as Demetre Tayshaun Isaac. They were able to obtain arrest warrants charging him with first-degree murder and felony reckless endangerment.
CPD's Fugitive Unit in conjunction with the USMS began looking for him. They developed information that he was located in Alabama. He was located Wednesday morning, in Montgomery, Al., by the USMS Gulf Coast Regional Task Force, Montgomery Police Department, and Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. He is currently in Montgomery County Jail awaiting extradition to Hamilton County.
This incident has not been linked to the skate park or those that frequent the skate park. The skate park was closed at the time of this incident.
"On behalf of the Chattanooga Police Department, we thank our law enforcement partners in Alabama for assisting us with this arrest. This arrest, in addition to the other recent homicide arrests, continues to show the hard work that our officers and detectives do every day to bring resolution and justice for victims and families of tragic incidents like this," said Chattanooga Police Public Information Officer Sergeant Victor Miller.
This is an on-going investigation. This information is preliminary and is subject to change as the investigation continues.