On the afternoon of Friday, September 4, 2015, 14-year-old Desean Fountain was walking home from school in East Liberty, Pittsburgh. Around 4:30 p.m., shots rang out at an apartment complex on Ipswich Court. Desean was standing between housing units with his backpack on when he was struck in the head and taken to Children’s Hospital in critical condition.

Desean underwent surgery and fought for several days, but he was pronounced dead on Wednesday, September 9, 2015. He was remembered as a good student and a participant in Amachi Pittsburgh, a youth mentoring program. Family, friends, and community members held vigils and a reward of up to $1,000 was offered by Pittsburgh Crime Stoppers for information leading to an arrest, but no arrests have been made and no suspects have been publicly identified.

A DeSean Fountain Memorial Fund was established at The Pittsburgh Foundation to support mentoring and after-school programs. If anyone knew Desean or has information about the shooting on Ipswich Court that afternoon, please come forward.