In the late morning hours of a mid-October day in 2020, a prearranged meeting in the parking lot of a Nashville, Tennessee, Walmart would end in a flash of violence and a young man’s death. The man, a 23-year-old from Alabama, had driven to the Hamilton Church Road shopping center to meet with 27-year-old Pierre Burns Jr. of La Vergne. The two men arrived in separate vehicles, their encounter seemingly planned, though the exact nature of their business would soon be cast in a dark light.
Once in the parking lot, the man from Alabama left his own car and slid into Burns' black Chevrolet sedan. What transpired next inside that car would be a matter of life and death. According to Burns’ later account to the police, the younger man produced a firearm and, in a sudden turn of events, put the gun to Burns’ head in an attempted robbery. Burns, who was also armed, claimed a desperate struggle for control erupted within the confines of the car, culminating in Burns fatally shooting the 23-year-old.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Burns was seen taking a satchel from his vehicle and discarding it under a bush at a neighboring building before walking back toward the scene of the shooting. His attempt to hide the bag proved futile. Responding officers from the Metro Nashville Police Department quickly detained Burns and located the abandoned satchel. Inside, they discovered a quantity of marijuana and numerous pills, suggesting the encounter was rooted in a drug-related transaction. Two semi-automatic pistols were also recovered at the scene.
While Burns maintained that he acted in self-defense, investigators proceeded with caution. He was taken into custody and subsequently booked on a variety of charges, including drug possession, gun charges, and evidence tampering. The homicide unit of the Metro Nashville Police Department continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding the shooting to determine the full story of what led to the violent end of a young man's life in a busy parking lot.
