Nashville Boy, 12, Shot Dead Near Theater District. Police Charge 24-Year-Old in Brawl.

What Happened

On Sunday evening, a fight involving six to seven people broke out at the intersection of Representative John Lewis Way and Deaderick Street in Nashville, steps from the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in the heart of the city's theater district.

Damarion Morehead, 12 years old, was struck in the head by gunfire. He was transported to the hospital and later pronounced dead.

The Metro Nashville Police Department arrested 24-year-old Devin Orr as the suspected shooter.

What the Video Shows

Investigators reviewed surveillance footage from the scene. According to a statement from the Metro Nashville Police Department, the footage shows Orr reaching into his waistband during the brawl to retrieve a handgun. At that point, others involved in the fight began to flee. Shots were fired. Morehead collapsed.

The police statement did not specify how many rounds were fired or whether anyone else was struck.

The Weapon

When detectives questioned Orr after his arrest, he allegedly admitted to discarding a handgun in a nearby sewer. Investigators recovered the weapon, giving prosecutors physical evidence to link to the shooting beyond witness accounts or video alone.

The Alleged Trigger

According to the Metro Nashville Police Department, as reported by the New York Post, the brawl started over a female. No further details about the dispute were provided by police.

Court Status

Davidson County court records, as cited by the New York Post, show Orr was due in court on Wednesday, June 24, 2026. As of this writing, no attorney for Orr has been listed in court records.

No charges beyond the arrest have been publicly specified in available source material. What Orr is formally charged with, and whether additional charges such as first-degree murder or felony murder are being pursued by the Davidson County District Attorney, has not been confirmed in these sources.

The Harder Question

Brawls are chaotic, and establishing precise criminal intent in the middle of a multi-person street fight is genuinely complicated. If Orr's defense argues he fired in fear during a violent altercation, that claim will have to be weighed against the video evidence, the trajectory of the shots, and whether Morehead was a participant or a bystander. Those facts have not been publicly established yet.

The video, according to police, captured a man reaching for a concealed weapon in a street brawl and a 12-year-old dying as a result.

Where This Stands

Damarion Morehead was 12. Whatever brought the adults around him into that intersection on Sunday night, he is dead.

The unresolved question is what charges Davidson County prosecutors will formally file against Devin Orr, and whether the recovered handgun was legally owned and carried. Tennessee is a permitless carry state, but drawing a firearm during a fight and killing a child is a different legal matter entirely. Orr's first court appearance is scheduled for today, June 24.