In the autumn of 2019, the life of 18-year-old Steven Bernard Shelton Jr. was tragically cut short in Nashville, Tennessee. On the evening of November 1st, Shelton was fatally shot while sitting as a passenger in a white Hyundai Tucson in the Cumberland View Public Housing development. After the shooting, the driver of the Hyundai drove Shelton to the entrance of General Hospital, carried him to the door, and then departed from the scene.
North Precinct detectives quickly began an
investigation into the young man's death. Their efforts led to the identification of a 15-year-old, Zyshawn Lewis, as one of two individuals who had approached the SUV and opened fire. Lewis was taken into custody in November 2019 and charged with criminal homicide. At the time of his arrest, Lewis was also charged with aggravated assault on a police officer in connection with a separate incident where he allegedly fired shots toward the North Precinct building in September of that year.
The investigation continued as detectives worked to identify the second suspect involved in Shelton's murder. For a time, authorities sought the public's help in identifying a man who was seen on surveillance footage picking up one of the suspects immediately after the shooting and driving him away. Through a combination of tips from the community to Crime Stoppers and video surveillance evidence, investigators were eventually able to identify the second suspect as Rico Ransom. In May 2021, a Juvenile Court arrest order was issued for the 17-year-old, charging him with criminal homicide in the death of Steven Shelton Jr. The driver of the Hyundai in which Shelton was a passenger cooperated with the ongoing investigation.
