On the night of May 21, 2025, 12-year-old Nashon Thomas was shot and killed in a West Philadelphia home on the 800 block of Brooklyn Street. Officers responding to a 9 p.m. call found Nashon unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the head; he was taken to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and pronounced dead at 9:42 p.m. A firearm was recovered at the scene.

Detectives concluded the fatal shot was fired by Nashon’s 14-year-old brother inside the third-floor bedroom. The boys’ mother, described as the only adult present, and several other young children who had been in the house were brought in for questioning. By May 22, police had taken the 14-year-old into custody; he was later charged with involuntary manslaughter and the matter was referred to juvenile court. Authorities said they were still investigating who owned the gun and how it came to be inside the residence.

If anyone knew the family, had information about how the firearm entered the home, or saw activity on Brooklyn Street that night, please share what you know.