SILVERTON, Ohio —

Qasseem Dixon, 25, and Ryan Brown, 27, are both accused of murdering nine-year-old Da'Myiah Barton-Pickens in a drive-by shooting.

"The motive for this aggravated murder is in retaliation for a robbery," said Dave Wood, assistant prosecutor for Hamilton County.

Investigators said Brown recruited Dixon to shoot up the home on Plainfield Road because of a drug dispute involving one of Da'Myiah's relatives.

Both defense attorneys said their clients did not have any criminal history involving violence.

WLWT decided to look into that.

Hamilton County juvenile court records show Dixon first faced criminal charges when he was 14 years old.

He was charged with assault, disorderly conduct and aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon -- a firearm.

Other charges such as possession of marijuana and receiving stolen property followed him through his teenage years.

Dixon has been in and out of jail or prison almost every year of his adult life.

"This defendant's history while out on bond is atrocious," Wood said.

Records show the father of three was sent to prison for having weapons on him in 2017.

"Once he got out of the Department of Corrections, within less than a year, he was charged with possession of cocaine. He posted that bond, and within 14 days, he picked up a new felony fleeing and eluding that he was ultimately convicted of," Wood said. "While he posted those two bonds, he picked up a third indictment of having weapons under disability and posting bonds on all those indictments, he picked up a fourth indictment for possession of fentanyl."

Dixon served a 36-month prison sentence.

Brown also has a rap sheet.

From what WLWT was able to find, he didn't start committing crimes until he was an adult.

Records show he has a carrying concealed weapons conviction in 2020 and multiple possession of drugs charges between 2015 and this year.

"He currently has a pending aggravated possession of drugs. He was charged with having more than the bulk amount of Oxycodone. It's a felony of the third degree," Wood said.

The two suspects now face the most serious crime a person can face in Ohio, aggravated murder.

Dixon is being held in the Hamilton County Justice Center on a $2.5 million bond. Brown's bond was set at $2 million.

CINCINNATI —

The two men involved in the mass shooting in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine district last August appeared in court on Monday for their pretrial hearing.

Cincinnati Police Department says 21 shots were fired in the shooting that injured eight on Aug. 7, 2022.

The first barrage of bullets included a shot fired by Cincinnati police officer Joe Shook, who hit a suspect named Diablo McCoats, 29, in the leg.

At the press conference last year, officials said 29-year-old McCoats has been indicted on 16 counts of felonious assault and one count of having weapons while under disability.

If convicted on all charges, McCoats faces a maximum sentence of 91 years, per court docs.

Jarvis Barnes, 34, has been indicted on seven counts of felonious assault and one count of having weapons while under disability.

If convicted on all charges, Deters said Barnes faces up to 80 years in prison.

Tuesday's hearing established that Sept. 12 will be the final pre-trial before the trial begins on Sept. 18.

LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas police report 14 people were shot inside a hookah lounge overnight and that one person has died and two others are in critical condition.

Officers responded to the shooting around 3:15 a.m. The shooter or shooters left before officers arrived, police say.

The identity of the deceased will be released by the coroner's office.

Authorities call this an isolated incident and say there is no threat to the public at this time, though they are looking for the suspects.

Anyone with information can contact Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's homicide investigators at 702-828-3521 or by emailing Homicide@lvmpd.com.

To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555 or submit a tip online at crimestoppersofnv.com.
Watch the full police update below:

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This story was first reported by KTNV in Las Vegas.

SPRINGDALE, Ohio —

Springdale police asked for the public's help Tuesday. They're seeking leads in a two-year-old homicide.

Josue Lopez-Ramirez was a Guatemalan immigrant who police said came to the United States with his family for a better life.

His life came to an end when he was just 18 years old.

"When you stand there and see a mother who just watched her son be taken from her, you never forget that," said Springdale police Chief Tom Wells.

Wells was at this scene that night. It was the day before Thanksgiving, 2019.

Lopez-Ramirez had just picked up his mother from work and had returned to their apartment on Chesterdale Road.

"They pulled in to their parking stall in front of their apartment building, and before they were even able to get out of the car, a suspect car pulled in behind them, kind of blocking them in," said Springdale police officer Keenan Riordan.

A group of men got out of the car. Police said they first attempted to rob Lopez-Ramirez's mother and then him.

"And one of the suspect's shot him. He was shot one time, however, multiple shots were fired," Riordan said.

The suspects took off. Police collected evidence and followed several leads, but nothing has led investigators to the suspects.

Tuesday, police urged the public to help them get answers.

"Maybe the suspects spoke about the accident. Maybe they acted suspiciously," Riordan said. "Maybe they'll talk about it at Thanksgiving dinner. Maybe they talked about it at Thanksgiving dinner two years ago, and I'm hoping that will jar a memory or something like that now that the holidays are upon us again."

The hope is to bring closure to a family who is still suffering.

"It is our interest to see justice for people who are victimized in this community, and it's also our experience, people talk about crimes. They just do," Wells said.

Police said they don't know why Lopez-Ramirez and his mother were targeted. They said it was possibly a crime of opportunity. Another theory is that they were followed home.

The only description police have of the suspects is what Lopez-Ramirez's mother gave them. She said it was a group of either three or four black men wearing dark clothes and in a dark-colored car.

Anyone with information is asked to call Springdale police or Crimestoppers at 513-352-3040.

MASON, Ohio —

Several people have now been charged in connection to a series of fights at Kings Island over the weekend.

The popular amusement park was forced to close about 30 minutes early Saturday night after several fights broke out between teenagers.

Video taken by a guest shows people pushing and punching each other and knocking people to the ground. Both young men and a young woman can be seen hitting others, repeatedly.

According to dispatch reports and video, there were at least two large-scale fights within the amusement park on Saturday, with one of them spilling over into the parking lot.

Officer Peter Morris with the Mason Police Department was among the first on scene. In a report, Morris says he assisted park security in trying to break up the crowd, adding he saw a male hit a female multiple times, even grabbing her by the throat.

Morris says he was shoved to the ground, claiming multiple people started to pull on his equipment while hitting him -- at one point even being sprayed with pepper spray.

The report states Morris only had minor cuts and bruises.

A statement from the Mason Police Department released Tuesday says multiple individuals have been identified and that "suspect information will be presented to Warren County Juvenile Court for charges."

Authorities did not release any names, saying only that they are still working to identify "other responsible parties."

Officials with Kings Island also released a statement Tuesday, saying that they will up security measures within the park. Video footage throughout the park has been shared with investigators, park officials said.

Increased security will be in place at the park, beginning this weekend.

What that increased security entails is unknown.

"We will continue to utilize our Protect Our Park program, which enables guests to report any safety or security concern through their mobile device," a statement from Kings Island reads. "We are implementing additional security protocols and operational policies as appropriate. We believe these actions will help ensure that Kings Island remains what it has been for nearly 50 years – a place where generations of families and friends can gather for a day of safe fun and good food. More than 3 million guests a year have counted on us for exactly that since we opened in 1972, and we will continue to deliver on that promise for generations to come."