Court records say the shootings came hours after an argument about a coming trial.

LEXINGTON, Minn. — A 53-year-old Minneapolis man is charged with killing his estranged partner and her 5-year-old son in a Lexington home, according to investigators who say the shootings happened early March 18 after a late-night argument and a short manhunt through the neighborhood.

The case matters beyond a single block in Anoka County because court records describe prior threats, earlier restraining orders and a family dispute that prosecutors now say ended in two close-range killings. Investigators have identified the dead as 44-year-old Jennifer Sue Marsaw and her son, Marzai Andrew Dawson. Irving Van Marsaw faces two counts of second-degree murder as the investigation moves from the crime scene to the courtroom.

Investigators say the final stretch began on the evening of March 17, when Jennifer Marsaw forced Irving Van Marsaw out of the house after an argument that involved a knife. A daughter later told police the last exchange she heard came about 7 p.m., when her mother said she was going to take him to trial. He answered, “Bet,” she told investigators, and the call ended. A few hours later, just before 1 a.m. on March 18, the daughter and two siblings returned from a brief walk outside the home on Ryan Place and heard several popping sounds as they came back.

According to the criminal case described by local media, one younger brother ran inside as Van Marsaw walked out the front door with a handgun in his hand. The suspect then moved toward a shed on the property, investigators said, while the boy came back out screaming that their mother and little brother had been shot. The children ran to a neighbor’s house for help. Police were dispatched at about 12:50 a.m. Officers found Jennifer Marsaw with a gunshot wound to the chest. Marzai Dawson was still alive when first responders reached him, but he later died at a hospital.

Authorities say a K-9-assisted search ended with Van Marsaw’s arrest at about 1:33 a.m. in a wooded area a few blocks west of the house. Investigators later recovered a 9 mm handgun in a nearby area across the street from the residence. While in custody, police said, he made remarks that suggested the shootings happened in the “heat of passion.” The medical examiner found Jennifer Marsaw died from a contact-range gunshot wound to the chest, while Dawson died from a contact-range gunshot wound to the back. Spent bullets and an unspent round were recovered near the bodies, according to charging documents reported by local outlets.

The homicide charges arrived with a longer history already on paper. Jennifer Marsaw sought a restraining order in November 2025, writing that her estranged partner threatened to hurt her if she did not reveal where she lived and threatened to interfere with financial support, according to court records cited by local news reports. In February 2026, she asked for another order, writing that he had threatened to kill her and her children, followed her and entered her home without permission. Both orders were issued, and both were later withdrawn. The record does not publicly explain why they were withdrawn.

Neighbors said the violence shattered the sense of routine on a quiet cul-de-sac. Steven Clark, who lives several houses away, told KSTP he woke around 12:54 a.m. to pounding on his door and heard children pleading for help. He said some were without shoes in the snow and looked terrified but acted with remarkable calm once they were inside. Another resident described the block as a place where little happened before the killings. The local Tree of Life church said it began planning support for the surviving family members after the shooting.

Van Marsaw was booked into the Anoka County Jail and was scheduled for an initial court appearance on March 20, with another court date set for April 14. Prosecutors have filed two second-degree murder counts, and investigators have said the case remains under review by local police, the sheriff’s office and medical examiners.

Author note: Last updated April 13, 2026.