16-year-old charged with murder indicted by Boone County grand jury
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A 16-year-old boy who is charged as an adult in connection with a 2025 shooting death was indicted by a Boone County grand jury on Friday.
Deshawn D. Brown, of Columbia, is charged with first-degree robbery, armed criminal action and second-degree murder in the death of Zarian Simpson.
Another 16-year-old, Rodney Moore Jr., is also accused in the shooting and is charged with the same felonies as Brown. Steven Paden, 35, of Columbia, is also charged with first-degree robbery, armed criminal action and felony murder.
All three people are listed on the Boone County Jail’s online roster without bond. An arraignment for Brown is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Monday, June 8. Moore had a hearing on Monday, June 1.
Paden has a hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday, Aug. 24 and his jury trial is scheduled to begin 9 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29.
Officers were called to the Eastgate Apartments at Old 63 and Broadway on June 15, 2025, when police found Simpson with a gunshot wound.
Dispatchers heard gunfire while Simpson was on the phone with them during a chase. He went silent after the shots rang out, and his car crashed into an apartment complex near Stephens Lake Park, previous reporting shows.
Moore allegedly admitted to law enforcement that he fired a gun at Simpson’s vehicle and that Brown was a part of the robbery, court documents in previous reporting show.