In the summer of 2016, a burst of gunfire shattered the peace of a North Nashville neighborhood, leaving a family and community grappling with a profound loss. On the afternoon of June 7th, 32-year-old Keon Hawkins and his 22-year-old stepson, Kemontanez Armstrong, were fatally shot. The two men were reportedly leaving a friend's house in the vicinity of Weakley and Bessie Avenues when they were ambushed.
The brazen daylight shooting prompted an immediate police investigation.
Authorities disclosed that they were searching for up to two individuals who were seen fleeing the scene and running towards a wooded area shortly after the shots were fired. A description of one of the suspects was released to the public; he was identified as a Black male, last seen wearing all black clothing and white tennis shoes, with a medium-length, unkempt hairstyle. In the immediate aftermath, law enforcement officials stated that a motive for the killings had not yet been established.
The tragedy was compounded by a painful anniversary for the Hawkins family. Just a year prior, Keon Hawkins' young son had been the victim of a shooting in the very same area, an incident in which the child was shot in the head but survived. This devastating history added another layer of sorrow to the sudden and violent loss of his father.
In the years that have followed the deaths of Keon Hawkins and Kemontanez Armstrong, there have been no publicly announced arrests or naming of any suspects in connection with the double homicide. The case has lingered, leaving a void of answers for their loved ones and the wider Nashville community. Despite the initial leads and the description of a potential suspect, the investigation appears to have stalled, and the search for justice for the two men continues. The community has, at various times, come together to remember the victims and to call for an end to the gun violence that claimed their lives, but the case remains an unsolved chapter in the city's history.
