PHOENIX — Months after a deadly attack, multiple people have been indicted and arrested in connection to the death of 16-year-old Preston Lord.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell held a news conference with Queen Creek police officials on Wednesday where they announced four of the indictments: 17-year-old Talan Renner, 20-year-old Dominic Turner, 17-year-old Talyn Vigil, and 18-year-old William Hines.
Watch the Queen Creek PD, MCAO news conference in the player below:
All four individuals were charged with first-degree felony murder and kidnapping, and Turner was additionally charged with aggravated robbery.
While some are under the age of 18, all will be charged as adults, according to officials.
Video provided to ABC15, in the player above, shows the moments police arrested Talyn Vigil in the Color Therapy parking lot located near Baseline and Gilbert roads on Wednesday, March 6. Vigil is being charged with one count of first-degree murder, and one count of kidnapping for his alleged role in the murder of Preston Lord.
On Thursday morning, following the announcement of four individuals being indicted, a fifth person, 19-year-old Taylor Sherman, appeared in court on the same charges connected to Preston Lord's death.
Later in the morning Thursday, MCAO confirmed to ABC15 that a sixth person, a 17-year-old named Jacob Meisner, was also arrested in the case.
MCAO confirmed Thursday night that 18-year-old Treston Billey was also arrested. He is facing one count of aggravated robbery, one count of first-degree murder and/or second-degree in the alternative, and one count of kidnapping. It is unclear if Billey has been officially indicted.
The robbery charges added to several of the suspects relates to another person having their personal property stolen earlier in the night.
All seven defendants face a first-degree murder charge, but it's under Arizona's felony murder law.
To be convicted of felony murder, local defense attorney Armando Nava said, a person must be guilty of one of several eligible felonies, and the furtherance of that crime resulted in the death of someone.
Kidnapping is one of the eligible felonies, and all the defendants in this case are also charged with kidnapping, accused of restraining Preston from leaving.
The maximum punishment for first-degree felony murder is the death penalty if the killer is over 18 years old and life in prison for those under 18.
Queen Creek officials say they received arrest warrants Wednesday morning and began operations early that afternoon on multiple arrests.
"This investigation and review are not over," said Mitchell.
Following the Queen Creek press conference, Gilbert Police Department Chief Michael Soelberg provided an update on teen violence investigations, including further details on those indicted in the Lord case.
Watch the Gilbert Police Department news conference in the player below:
According to Gilbert police, Hines has three pending aggravated assault cases, one of which involves his arrest in an aggravated assault DUI case, and two other aggravated assault cases "that were never reported to the Gilbert Police Department until December of 2023 and January of 2024."
All three cases involving Hines are pending with the Maricopa County Superior Court.
Soelberg says Turner has one incident, a 2023 traffic collision, documented with the police department. According to the chief, there are no other reported involvements.
Other prior incidents for the indicted individuals were reported by Gilbert police, but the department did not confirm the identities as they are under the age of 18.
"Today's indictment represents one more step in bringing justice to the Lord family, we again ask if anyone has any information about any of these investigations to come forward to the Gilbert Police Department," said Chief Soelberg.
Gilbert's mayor also spoke out Wednesday night via social media:
Statement from
— Mayor Brigette Peterson (@GilbertAZMayor) March 7, 2024
Gilbert Mayor Brigette Peterson pic.twitter.com/lw7T0gRVlm
STATEMENTS FROM PRESTON LORD'S FAMILY
The legal representation for Preston Lord's parents, Nick Lord and Autumn Curiel, shared the following statement:
"We extend heartfelt gratitude to the community members who stepped up to provide information to secure these arrests. But for law enforcement's collective efforts and community members' invaluable cooperation, these arrests would not have happened. Each arrest represents a step towards accountability and justice for our son Preston."
Preston's aunt, Melissa Lord, provided the following statement regarding the indictments:
"Today is the day I have prayed for. I pray now our hearts can start to properly start to grieve knowing the boys responsible for murdering my nephew are going to be held accountable. I only wish the parents of these boys would’ve done the right thing from the beginning and not drawn this out 18 weeks and 4 days, that is incomprehensible to me. I pray for their hearts tonight as I cannot imagine coming to terms with what your sons have done and that you have remained silent and not given our family a small bit of closure. To the boys, I’m grateful you will have to be clothed in Preston’s favorite color for a very long time, please remember him each time you put orange on and the beautiful life you chose to take from this world."
THE ATTACK AND INVESTIGATION TIMELINE
Preston Lord was taken to a hospital after being assaulted at a Halloween party near 194th Street and Via del Oro in Queen Creek on October 28. He died two days later.
“He had his entire life ahead of him,” said Daniel Kelly, who is friends with the Lord family.
His death was recently officially determined to be a homicide, according to a medical examiner. Officials have confirmed the medical examiner's report is complete and was sent to law enforcement. The report will go under legal review before public release.
Lord's homicide is the first homicide investigation for the Queen Creek Police Department, which was formed only a few years ago.
TIMELINE: A look at teen violence in the East Valley
In November, Queen Creek PD said it identified multiple "persons of interest."
In December, police recommended charges against seven people potentially involved in Lord’s death. The Maricopa County Attorney told ABC15 the case is still under review and additional charges are possible.
Officials recently released a photo of a vehicle believed to be a witness to “another incident” that occurred near the area of Lord’s assault. They’re still asking that person to come forward with any information.
“We've had witnesses that were reluctant to provide information, so we've gone back to them and done walkthroughs with them,” Queen Creek Police Chief Randy Brice told ABC15. “What we're finding is that they're starting to open up a little bit more and provide additional information.”
WIDER INVESTIGATIONS AND COMMUNITY CONCERN
Lord's death brought a series of attacks on teenagers in the East Valley into the spotlight, leading multiple police agencies to start or reopen cases of violence.
Multiple arrests have been made in numerous other cases, including some related to a so-called "Gilbert Goons" gang. A civil lawsuit has also been filed in connection to some of those attacks.
Since Lord's death, the East Valley community has held multiple "Light the Night" events in Lord's memory and attended town council meetings to bring concerns to local officials.
In January, Queen Creek Police Chief Randy Brice said accountability and arrests were coming in Lord's case. However, the community continued to show frustration, even demanding the resignation of some leaders amid teen violence investigations.
“What else can be done to prevent this in our community?” Lord's father, Nick, said at a recent meeting in Chandler. “That the impact of youth violence is far more widespread than we all could have imagined at this point.”
“Action and change is imperative and I do believe it’s a community effort. Silence is deadly,” Lord's stepmother, Melissa Ciconte, said.
Have a news tip related to teen violence in the Valley? Email us at teenviolence@abc15.com.
See the latest ABC15 coverage on the developments of the string of incidents here.