A 23-year-old truck driver is charged with first-degree murder after police say he fired two shots through his driver’s side window and killed a 29-year-old U.S. Marine veteran during a rush-hour road rage confrontation at a Tyler intersection.
The shooting, reported just after 5 p.m. Feb. 13 at Grande Boulevard and Paluxy Drive, has drawn attention in East Texas because investigators say the victim was unarmed and his wife and three children were in the car that he stepped out of moments before he was killed. Police say the driver, Dayton Alexander Morgan, told investigators the Marine made no threats and had nothing in his hands, a key detail as detectives and prosecutors review whether the gunfire can be justified as self-defense.
Tyler police said they received multiple 911 calls about shots fired near the intersection as traffic was stopped at a red light. Officers arrived to find an adult man on the ground near a pickup truck, and bystanders were trying to help, police and court records said. The victim, identified as Trevor Julian, was taken to a hospital but was later pronounced dead, authorities said. Investigators said Morgan was the driver of a 2008 white Dodge Ram pickup that had been traveling east on Grande Boulevard behind a white Tesla sedan carrying Julian and his family. The encounter began when traffic slowed for the light and Morgan’s truck stopped close to the Tesla, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. Morgan told investigators the Tesla came to an abrupt stop and he had to brake hard, leaving him closer than he wanted to be. Julian, who was riding in the front passenger seat while his wife drove, got out and walked toward the pickup, the affidavit said.
Police said the two men argued in the roadway while vehicles were backed up behind them. Morgan told investigators Julian shouted for him to back up the truck, while Morgan shouted back for Julian to move on, according to the affidavit. In Morgan’s account, Julian walked to the front of the pickup and yelled through the windshield while pointing with his left hand. Morgan said he responded with profanity, then saw Julian move toward the driver’s side of the pickup. Morgan opened his door partway but stayed seated in the truck, police said. As Julian approached the driver’s side window, Morgan pulled a pistol from his center console and fired one shot through the glass, striking Julian in the neck or throat, investigators said. Authorities said Morgan then fired a second round that struck Julian in the chest after Julian stumbled and moved again. Julian fell to the ground and remained there until paramedics arrived, police said.
In interviews summarized in court records and local reporting, investigators said Morgan did not describe any weapon in Julian’s possession and did not claim Julian made direct threats to hurt him. The affidavit said Morgan told police Julian did not have anything in his hands during the confrontation. Police also said Julian did not have a weapon on him. Detectives wrote that after speaking with Morgan and reviewing witness accounts, they did not find information that would support the shooting as self-defense. Investigators cited evidence at the scene that they said backed up their view of the encounter, including blood outside Morgan’s pickup that they said indicated Julian was outside the truck when he was shot. Police also pointed to damage around the pickup, including the shattered driver’s side window. Authorities have not publicly detailed whether the pickup’s door frame or interior was struck by the gunfire, but they have said the shots were fired from inside the truck through the window area.
Julian’s family was in the Tesla when he got out, and police said his wife and three children were in the car as the argument unfolded. Authorities have not identified the wife or children, and officials have not said whether they gave statements at the scene or later at the police station. Investigators said a passenger was also in Morgan’s pickup during the shooting, though police have not publicly identified that person or described what they saw. The number of witnesses matters because the confrontation happened in an active traffic lane during the evening commute, and multiple drivers called 911. Police have said they are reviewing statements from drivers who were stopped nearby, along with any available video evidence, as they reconstruct where each person was standing and how close Julian came to the pickup before Morgan fired.
In the days after the shooting, the case moved quickly into the criminal court system. Morgan, of Ben Wheeler, Texas, was arrested and booked into the Smith County Jail, authorities said. A judge set his bond at $1 million, according to local reporting. Morgan’s charge is first-degree murder, a count that can carry a long prison sentence if a jury convicts. Prosecutors must prove Morgan intentionally caused Julian’s death, and they are expected to focus on Morgan’s own statements to police, witness accounts and the physical evidence from the intersection. The defense, if it contests the charge, is likely to scrutinize the seconds before the shots, including whether Julian’s approach to the driver’s door created a fear of assault, whether Morgan believed he could not drive away safely, and whether the brief opening of the driver’s door changed the perceived threat.
The case also highlights how self-defense claims are evaluated in Texas when a person uses a gun during a street confrontation. Investigators have signaled they do not believe Morgan met the standard for self-defense, pointing to the lack of a weapon and the absence of threats in Morgan’s account. Authorities have not described Julian as physically striking Morgan or entering the pickup, and they have not reported injuries to Morgan from the encounter. Police said Julian approached the truck and shouted, but the affidavit does not describe Morgan attempting to retreat or drive off before firing. Officers and detectives will typically compare a suspect’s version to witness statements and any video, looking for evidence of imminent danger. In this case, police have emphasized that Morgan stayed inside the pickup and fired through the window, and they have said Julian was outside the vehicle when he was shot.
Julian was 29 and lived in Whitehouse, a community southeast of Tyler, authorities said. Local reports described him as a Marine veteran, and police released a photo showing him in uniform during his service. Officials have not provided details about his military career beyond that he served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and they have not said whether he was on active duty or a veteran at the time of his death. Police have also not publicly described the family’s plans that afternoon or where they were heading when the confrontation happened. The intersection where the shooting occurred is part of a busy corridor lined with shopping areas and residential neighborhoods, and the crash of a sudden argument in traffic is the type of event that can draw a crowd quickly as drivers stop and look for a safe place to pull over.
Investigators have not released a full timeline of what happened after Julian fell to the ground, but police said bystanders attempted emergency aid until paramedics took over. Authorities have not said whether Morgan remained at the scene voluntarily or whether he was detained immediately at gunpoint by responding officers. Police have also not said whether Morgan’s pistol was seized at the scene, though it is typical for investigators to collect the firearm as evidence in a killing. Officials have not released the results of any ballistic testing, and they have not said whether a dash camera, home security camera or vehicle camera captured the shooting. The presence of a Tesla has prompted questions locally about whether onboard cameras recorded the moments around the confrontation, but investigators have not said publicly what video exists or what it shows.
As the case advances, prosecutors are expected to rely on the arrest warrant affidavit and additional investigative reports to lay out why they believe the shooting was criminal. Those materials can include the precise location of the bullet strikes, the distance between the shooter and the victim, and forensic analysis that supports or challenges witness accounts. Police have already pointed to blood evidence near the pickup as one detail they say supports their reconstruction. Investigators will also likely address the setting: a red-light stop with cars surrounding both vehicles, a factor that can be used either to argue Morgan could not safely leave or to argue that Julian posed less of a threat because the confrontation happened in public view with many witnesses nearby.
Defense attorneys in similar cases often examine whether a confrontation was mutual, whether either driver escalated the dispute, and whether the victim’s actions could reasonably be seen as an imminent threat of serious harm. In Morgan’s recorded statements described in reports, police said he admitted the victim made no threats and appeared unarmed, details that could become central at trial. Prosecutors, meanwhile, may emphasize the choice to reach for a gun during a verbal dispute and to fire twice through the window at close range. The fact that Julian’s wife and children were watching from a few feet away has also become part of the public discussion, though investigators have not said whether they will present their accounts in court or whether any of the children are old enough to provide testimony.
For now, Tyler police have said the investigation remains active while the case proceeds through early court steps. Morgan remains jailed on the murder charge, and a court schedule is expected to include hearings that address the evidence supporting the charge, motions over what statements and video can be used at trial, and future dates for indictment and trial settings. Julian’s death is also being handled through routine post-mortem procedures, and officials have not publicly released details from an autopsy report beyond the locations of the gunshot wounds described in court records.
As of Saturday, authorities said the case still hinges on a short exchange at a red light that turned deadly in seconds, and the next major update is expected in court as prosecutors present evidence and Morgan’s defense responds to the first-degree murder charge.
Author note: Last updated February 21, 2026.