The individual accused of the fatal shooting of a 52-year-old at a Phoenix gas station had previously encountered legal issues related to weapons, according to court documents.
Deondre Stephon Franklin, aged 25, faced charges in 2020 for possessing a deadly weapon while under the legal age of 21, alongside an offense related to underage alcohol consumption, as detailed in the records from Peoria Municipal Court.
Prosecutors later dismissed the case after Franklin met all court-mandated conditions, which included undergoing a substance evaluation and completing educational requirements. The case concluded without a conviction.
Currently, Franklin is implicated in a deadly shooting that reportedly took place during a routine morning visit to a QuikTrip gas station, according to police.
Deondre Franklin, aged 25, appears in a booking photo. Authorities have arrested Franklin in connection with the deadly shooting at a Phoenix gas station. (Fox 10 Phoenix)
Phoenix Police reported that 52-year-old Danny Lyn Kaster was shot and killed during a morning incident at a QuikTrip in Phoenix on January 16. Officers arrived at the scene around 7:45 a.m. in response to gunfire reports and discovered Kaster with at least one gunshot wound.
Phoenix Fire Department crews transported Kaster to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries, police said.
Homicide detectives launched an investigation and were able to identify Franklin as the suspect. One day after the shooting, Franklin was arrested and booked on one count of murder, according to Phoenix Police Public Affairs Sgt. Rob Scherer.
Police tape and officers seen near the area of 19th Avenue and Baseline in Phoenix, Arizona, as officers responded to a shooting on Saturday, Nov. 22. (Phoenix Police via X)
He is being held on a $1 million bond and is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 23, records show. The investigation remains active.
Authorities have not released details about a possible motive or whether the two men knew each other prior to the encounter.
Kaster’s family told FOX 10 Phoenix the shooting stemmed from what they described as a seemingly ordinary interaction inside the gas station.
According to family members, Kaster was waiting in line to use the bathroom when Franklin allegedly attempted to cut in front of him. When Kaster intervened, the family said, Franklin shot him.
Danny Lyn Kaster, 52, is shown with his dogs in an undated photo. Kaster was later killed in a shooting, authorities said. (Fox 10 Phoenix)
“He was killed in the most ordinary interaction,” family members told the station, adding that “it could have been anyone.”
Kaster was taken to the hospital following the shooting but died shortly afterward, his family said.
Loved ones told FOX 10 Phoenix they now want the world to know who Kaster was beyond the circumstances of his death, describing him as a special person whose life was taken far too soon.
Police have not said whether surveillance video captured the shooting or whether a weapon has been recovered.
Investigators are urging anyone with information about the shooting to contact Silent Witness.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Arizona Department of Corrections for comment.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
