Charlie Fairley, known to friends and family as CJ, was 16 when he was shot and killed on the afternoon of Sunday, September 1, 2024, in Gulfport, Mississippi. Deputies responded about 2:30 p.m. to reports of gunfire in the 13000 block of Robindale Road and found Fairley lying in the street with a gunshot wound to his abdomen. He was airlifted to USA Children’s Hospital in Mobile, Alabama, but did not survive.

Family, teammates and coaches remembered Fairley as a talented basketball player with an unfailingly positive personality and an infectious smile. The community held a vigil the following evening and local representative Jeffery Hulum III spoke about sorrow and frustration over youth violence.

Investigators say the shooting began after a fistfight between Fairley and another teenager that escalated. Law enforcement took a 14-year-old into custody later that same day; bond was set at $1 million. Does anyone have information about CJ, his activities that afternoon, or the events on Robindale Road that could help clarify what happened?