Adoniyah Nachural Darnell Pruitt II, an 18-year-old from Lincoln Heights, Ohio, was shot while standing in the driveway of a home on November 17, 2017. He was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and pronounced dead there.

Hours after the shooting, 27-year-old Jason Rutherford was arrested and charged with murder. Rutherford first claimed someone else had done it, then later said he shot Pruitt after being startled when the teenager approached his car. Court records say Rutherford had been involved in illegal activities including drug trafficking, which was noted during proceedings. The victim’s family asked the court for a lighter sentence and Rutherford ultimately pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, receiving a 14-year prison term rather than the 25 years a murder conviction would have carried.

Pruitt’s mother, Valerie Bell, described the trauma of watching her son die slowly in the driveway and said she forgave Rutherford but would never forget her loss. Adoniyah was remembered by family and friends as positive, openhearted, determined and appreciative. Does anyone have memories of Adoniyah or information about the case to share?