In the early morning hours of March 16, 2016, in Savannah, Georgia, the life of 22-year-old Aahkil Heyward was tragically cut short by gun violence. Responding to a ShotSpotter alert, Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police officers arrived to find Heyward deceased outside a residence.
During the incident, two other individuals, Lewis Heyward, 57, who was Aahkil's father, and Tracy Taylor, 53, were also injured as they attempted to subdue the shooter.
Their injuries were not life-threatening, and they were later treated and released from Memorial University Medical Center.
In the days that followed, the investigation led police to identify a suspect. On March 18, 2016, Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police announced they had obtained arrest warrants for 19-year-old Vernon Priester. The warrants were for one charge of murder and two charges of aggravated assault. At the time the warrants were issued, Priester was hospitalized in stable condition due to serious injuries he sustained at the hands of his alleged victims during the altercation. Authorities stated that upon his release from the hospital, he would be arrested and transported to the Chatham County Detention Center.
