12-Year-Old Damarion Morehead Shot Dead in Nashville Brawl, 24-Year-Old Suspect in Custody

Sunday night, a brawl involving six to seven people broke out at the intersection of Representative John Lewis Way and Deaderick Street in downtown Nashville, directly adjacent to the Tennessee Performing Arts Center.

Damarion Morehead, 12 years old, was shot in the head during the fight. He was transported to a hospital and pronounced dead, according to the Metro Nashville Police Department.

The fight, according to police, started over a female.

Metro Nashville Police arrested 24-year-old Devin Orr as the suspected shooter. Investigators reviewed video from the scene.

In a statement, the department said: "During the brawl, Orr reached into his waistband to retrieve a handgun. At this point, persons involved in the fight began to run away. Shots were fired and Morehead fell to the ground."

When detectives questioned Orr, he allegedly admitted to concealing a handgun inside a sewer after the shooting. Officers recovered the weapon.

Fox News reported these details. No other major outlets had published independent coverage as of Monday, June 22, 2026, so the account here is drawn entirely from the single source.

Damarion Morehead was 12. He was not, as far as police have stated, a participant in the adult brawl that triggered the shooting. The Metro Nashville Police Department's statement does not explain why he was present at the scene or characterize his role in the altercation.

A 24-year-old pulling a gun in a crowded downtown area near a performing arts center during a multi-person street fight killed a child. Whether Morehead was a bystander, a relative of someone involved, or otherwise present has not been publicly clarified by investigators as of June 22.

Some will argue that a single arrest in a multi-person brawl raises questions about full accountability. If six to seven people were involved, Orr is currently the only person charged. Whether others in the fight face charges for their role in creating the conditions that led to the shooting is an open question the police statement does not resolve.

Davidson County court records show Orr is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. As of Monday, no attorney had been listed for him, according to Fox News.

The specific charges Orr will face have not been detailed in the available reporting. Tennessee law on criminal homicide would govern the case, but whether prosecutors pursue first-degree murder, second-degree murder, or reckless homicide depends on how they characterize Orr's intent. Pulling a weapon during a brawl and firing it into a group of fleeing people sits at the center of that legal question.

Metro Nashville Police have not announced any additional arrests in connection with the brawl.