William Thomas 'Tré' Lee III, a 31-year-old male, died on Monday, June 26, 2017, in Nashville, Tennessee, after being shot while sitting in a car with his girlfriend outside her apartment in the southern part of the city. An obituary stated that he passed away 'protecting the people he loved'.
The incident began when Pavan Voleti, the 28-year-old ex-boyfriend of Lee's girlfriend, approached the vehicle where Lee and the woman were seated.
An argument broke out between Voleti and the couple. The verbal altercation escalated, and Voleti produced a firearm, shooting Lee who was in the passenger seat. Lee was rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Following the shooting, Voleti fled the scene. Law enforcement identified him as the suspect and issued a warrant for his arrest on a charge of criminal homicide. Voleti was later taken into custody.
Court records show that Pavan R. Voleti was initially charged with first-degree murder. On March 1, 2019, he entered a guilty plea to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter. He was subsequently sentenced to 15 years of incarceration in the Tennessee Department of Correction. A related charge for being a felon in possession of a weapon was dismissed.
