In the spring of 2020, a tragedy unfolded in East Nashville that cut short the life of April Wilson, a 33-year-old Black woman. On the evening of April 10th, Wilson was inside her apartment at the Riverchase Apartments on Joseph Avenue when gunfire erupted from outside. The shots tore through her residence, and she was fatally wounded. Another apartment was also struck by the gunfire, but thankfully, no one else was injured in the reckless act of violence that claimed Wilson's life.
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investigation into her death, led by Metro Nashville Police, quickly focused on a suspect: 27-year-old Kevin Horner, a man with a known criminal history that included convictions for robbery, domestic assault, and vandalism. Detectives determined that Horner had been at an apartment near Wilson's and had been involved in a dispute with individuals at her home prior to the shooting. This altercation is believed to have been the catalyst for the targeted attack that followed.
In the days following the murder, Horner's volatile behavior continued. On April 11th, he was involved in a traffic incident on the Ellington Parkway exit ramp to Trinity Lane. After rear-ending another vehicle, he brandished a rifle at the other motorist before fleeing the scene on foot, leaving the weapon behind in his car. This act would prove to be a crucial break in the case. Forensic scientists at the MNPD crime laboratory were able to match spent shell casings found in Horner's abandoned vehicle to those recovered at the scene of April Wilson's murder, solidifying the link between him and the fatal shooting.
With a warrant issued for his arrest on a charge of criminal homicide, a manhunt for Kevin Horner began. The search came to an end on April 27, 2020, when members of the U.S. Marshal's Fugitive Task Force located and apprehended him at a residence in Dickson County, bringing a measure of resolution to the investigation into the senseless death of April Wilson.
