In a tragic turn of events that shattered the camaraderie of a Friday night, 19-year-old Deandre Pitts of Irwinton, Georgia, lost his life in Warner Robins. On the evening of February 19, 2021, Warner Robins police were called to a residence on Hartley Avenue around 8:11 p.m. following a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, they found a seriously wounded Deandre Pitts.
Initially, Pitts and his two companions, one of whom had a minor, non-gunshot-related injury, told officers that two masked men, both approximately six feet tall and dressed in black, had entered the home through an open front door and opened fire while they were playing video games.
The initial account of a home invasion quickly unraveled as investigators delved deeper into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Pitts was transported to Atrium Health Navicent in Macon, where he succumbed to his injuries. The individual who had sustained the minor injury and declined medical attention at the scene was identified as 20-year-old Gregory Tyshon Davis. As the investigation progressed, it became evident that the story of the armed intruders was a fabrication. Authorities determined that an argument had erupted between Pitts and Davis, escalating to a fatal point.
The investigation led to the arrest of Gregory Tyshon Davis, who was taken into custody by the Warner Robins Police Department with the assistance of the U.S. Marshal Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force at a home in Eaton, Georgia. Davis, who was initially considered a witness and a friend of Pitts, was charged with murder and aggravated assault. Family members of Deandre Pitts expressed their shock and confusion, revealing that the two had been high school classmates and even played on the same basketball team.
In October 2022, after a day and a half long trial, a Houston County jury found Gregory Tyshawn Davis guilty of the murder of Deandre Pitts. The evidence presented during the trial indicated that following an argument, Davis went to another room, retrieved a gun, and shot Pitts six times. Davis was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In the wake of this tragedy, Deandre Pitts's family established the Dre Day Foundation to combat youth gun violence and to honor his memory. They host community events, including an annual anti-gun violence awareness festival, to educate young people about conflict resolution and the devastating consequences of gun violence.
