On February 9, 2025, gunfire on Orange Avenue NW in Roanoke left multiple people wounded. Responding officers found 47-year-old Thomas Leroy Hairston Jr., a Black man from Vinton, with a critical gunshot wound, and a 17-year-old male with life-threatening injuries. Two other men were also shot; one returned fire and struck the teenage suspect, while a third suffered non-life-threatening wounds and a fourth later sought treatment.

Hairston remained hospitalized and died of his injuries on February 28, 2025. Investigators identified the 17-year-old as the primary aggressor who produced a firearm and opened fire, and charges were described as pending subject to the teenager’s recovery from his own wound. The investigation is ongoing.

If anyone saw the shooting or knows more about those present on Orange Avenue NW that morning, please come forward.