On January 23, 2023, a gunman opened fire inside the program’s common area on Southwest 5th Street. Dameron and another student, 16-year-old Rashad Carr, were shot and critically injured; both were taken to a hospital and pronounced dead.

The program’s founder, William Holmes, also known as Will Keeps, was seriously wounded after he tried to de-escalate and escort the shooter from the building; he was shot in his hip and finger and survived. Police arrested 18-year-old Preston Walls less than an hour after the shooting and later charged another man, Bravon Tukes, as the alleged getaway driver. Investigators said the shooting was rooted in a conflict between rival gangs, a characterization the victims’ families disputed.

At trial, Holmes testified he had tried to mediate a conflict between Walls and Dameron. Walls admitted to firing multiple times; his defense argued he acted in self-defense and noted Dameron had a gun at the school that day. Does anyone have information about Gionni’s life at the program or what led up to that afternoon?