Torell Hemphill, 35, a Black / African American male from Cincinnati, was found shot just before midnight on June 14, 2025, in the 800 block of Lincoln Avenue in Walnut Hills. Officers responding around 11:50 p.m. located the victim with a gunshot wound; Cincinnati Fire transported him to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he later died from his injuries. Another person at the scene was grazed by a bullet and treated by first responders.
Police did not immediately release what led up to the shooting, and the Homicide Unit asked anyone with information to come forward.
In the weeks that followed, detectives identified a suspect and, on July 16, 2025, arrested 19-year-old Dyshown Sockwell. According to Cincinnati police, Sockwell was charged with murder and two counts of felonious assault in connection with the killing of Torell Hemphill, 35, male, on Lincoln Avenue. Investigators did not disclose a motive at the time of the arrest, and the case remained under active investigation.
Early reports and public records chronicle the swift trajectory from the late-night gunfire to the hospital, and then to a citywide search for answers. Initial alerts noted that Torell Hemphill, 35, male, was transported in critical condition and that the neighborhood had seen multiple shootings that year, lending urgency to the call for tips. Listings that memorialize victims of gun violence later recorded the date and location tied to the incident, reinforcing the timeline police shared publicly.
Even as an arrest brought a name into focus, authorities emphasized that information from the community could still help piece together what happened in those final minutes on Lincoln Avenue. For the family and friends of Torell Hemphill, 35, male, the police updates outlined the dry facts of charges and court steps while underscoring what remained unresolved: why the confrontation ignited, how it unfolded, and who else, if anyone, might hold answers about the night that ended in fatal violence.
