A three-year-old boy, Aydeen Pruitt, died of a gunshot wound to the head on July 24, 2024, in an Oakwood Avenue apartment in Nashville. He was taken to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital and pronounced dead shortly after arrival. Aydeen’s twin brother and a 14-year-old were also in the apartment; the boy’s mother was in the kitchen when she heard a loud noise from the bedroom.

According to the father’s statement to detectives, 23-year-old D’Andre Pruitt had placed a loaded pistol on a bedroom floor and said he did not know Aydeen was in the room. Aydeen reportedly found the firearm and was fatally shot. After the shooting, D’Andre Pruitt left the apartment, taking the gun and driving off in a white Kia Soul; he later arranged to surrender at a church and was arrested after an interview with detectives on charges that included reckless homicide, child neglect, and evidence tampering.

The family had previously suffered a gun death when Aydeen’s four-year-old sister was killed in a drive-by shooting the year before. If anyone knew Aydeen or has information about what happened that day, please come forward.