Thomas Quarles, the suspect in the Watson Chapel Junior High school shooting that killed a 15-year-old victim in 2021, has plead guilty to First Degree Murder and has been sentenced to 40 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections by Judge Jodi Raines Dennis.
When police arrived at the school on the day of the shooting they found a school nurse administering first aid to the 15-year-old male victim, who succumbed to his injuries in a hospital following the shooting.
Jefferson County Prosecutor S. Kyle Hunter said Quarles ran from the school after the incident and was taken into custody by a dog team from the Arkansas Department of Corrections and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Investigator Terry Wingard.
A handgun was found in Quarles’ pocket, Hunter said during a probable cause hearing for Quarles on March 3, 2021.
Quarles was originally charged with Capital Murder and was set to go to trial on June 1, 2023 before entering the guilty plea for First Degree Murder.
Quarles was represented by Attorney Bobby Digby, while the State of Arkansas was represented by Prosecutor S. Kyle Hunter and Deputy Prosecutor Shana Alexander.
