In the summer of 2022, the life of 15-year-old Terence “Rocc” Denson was tragically cut short. On June 22, the male teenager was found with multiple gunshot wounds while in the driver's seat of a vehicle at an apartment complex in Clayton County, a suburban area south of Atlanta, Georgia. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Denson was a rising sophomore at Midtown High School where he was known to be an honor student.
The investigation into the shooting led authorities to identify
19-year-old Ahmad Royal as a suspect. It is believed that the fatal shooting occurred during an argument between Royal, his ex-girlfriend, and Denson. In the days following the incident, Royal was initially considered a person of interest and was charged with battery and family violence in connection to the altercation with his ex-girlfriend. Police also identified him as a member or affiliate of the Lincoln Bloods street gang.
Less than a month after Terence Denson's death, on July 12, 2022, Ahmad Royal was arrested. He was subsequently charged with malice murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Following his arrest, Royal was held in the Clayton County jail without bond.
Tragically, the violent death of young Terence was not the only loss his family would endure. Just a few months later, on September 8, 2022, his father, Terence Favors-Denson, who had become an anti-violence advocate in the wake of his son's killing, was also shot and killed in Atlanta. The elder Denson had been working to create a non-profit organization aimed at steering young people away from gun violence at the time of his death.
