Accused Granite City cop shooter appears in courtroom packed with police
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct information about the circumstances of the shooting.
The man accused of shooting and injuring Granite City Police Officer Tyler Timmons agreed to remain jailed until his trial when he appeared before a judge Thursday afternoon.
DJ W. Marshall, 26, of Granite City has been charged with attempted first-degree murder. He also faces charges of aggravated battery with a firearm, possession of a firearm by a repeat felony offender and felon in possession of a weapon.
Marshall waived his pretrial detention hearing Thursday before Madison County Associate Judge Emily Nielsen at the Madison County Criminal Justice Center in Edwardsville.
Such hearings allow prosecutors and defense attorneys to make arguments to a judge about whether a criminal suspect should be jailed or released with conditions until trial.
Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine’s office requested Marshall be detained, arguing he has a history of fleeing police and poses a danger to the community. Nielsen granted the request Thursday after Marshall and his public defender did not object.
Uniformed police officers packed the courtroom for Marshall’s hearing. Granite City Mayor Mike Parkinson, a former lieutenant with the city’s police department, and retired Granite City police chief Nick Novacich were also in attendance.
The shooting occurred the afternoon of Friday, Dec. 5, in the 1500 block of Johnson Road, across the street from Pizza World. Timmons was responding to a call for a suspicious person in the area at around 2:19 p.m.
The state’s attorney’s office alleged in a court filing that when Timmons approached, the suspect “immediately brandished a firearm and shot Officer Timmons multiple times.” He fired five shots, striking Timmons twice in the abdomen, before fleeing the scene on foot, according to the document, which cited video footage.
After a multi-agency manhunt through the city, Marshall was arrested in an abandoned vehicle at around 3 a.m. Saturday in the 2500 block of Missouri Avenue.
Timmons, 27, was taken to an area hospital and remains in stable condition, Granite City Police Chief Gary Brooks told reporters at a news conference on Monday. He has been with the department for four years.
Suspect’s criminal history
At the time of the shooting, Marshall was on probation after a conviction in April for aggravated fleeing police in December 2023. He was also on pretrial release pending trial in another case alleging aggravated fleeing from August.
He has been accused of battery three times since he was about 19 and has been sentenced to jail or prison twice.
In November 2018, Marshall was charged with aggravated battery in Granite City involving a pregnant victim or a person with a disability, which is a felony. Two months later, in January 2019, he was charged with misdemeanor battery causing bodily harm in Madison.
As part of a plea agreement in the 2018 felony case, those charges were reduced to misdemeanor domestic battery causing bodily harm. Marshall was convicted and jailed for 47 days, with credit for time served. The 2019 battery charge was dismissed as part of that plea.
In May 2021, Marshall faced felony charges of robbery and aggravated battery causing great bodily harm in Granite City.
Both charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement in a 2019 felony burglary case. Additional felony charges of burglary and criminal damage to property between $500 and $10,000 in Granite City from April 2021 were also dismissed in the same plea agreement.
Under the agreement, Marshall was sentenced to four years in prison in 2021, with credit for time served.
The Madison County state’s attorney’s and public defender’s offices enrolled Marshall in substance abuse treatment in 2019 through the Assessment and Treatment Court, or drug court, but he was terminated from the program for multiple violations.
As part of his 2021 incarceration, Marshall also participated in an “impact program,” which can include community service, cognitive behavioral programming, life skills, reentry planning, education and counseling.
This story was originally published December 11, 2025 at 2:50 PM.
