In a heartbreaking incident on the evening of Friday, February 6, 2026, a young life was tragically cut short. Five-year-old Jaylon Young, a boy from the Florissant, Missouri area, died from a gunshot wound. The incident occurred in a home in the 12400 block of Jerries Lane in Black Jack, a community in north St. Louis County. Police responded to a call for an accidental injury around 9:40 p.m. and found the child with a gunshot injury.
Jaylon was rushed to a local hospital, but his injuries proved to be fatal.
The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the young boy's death quickly led to an arrest. Authorities took Jaylon's uncle, 29-year-old Rayvon McPherson of Black Jack, into custody. According to reports, McPherson had left a loaded firearm unsecured and within reach of the child while he was left unattended. It is believed that Jaylon found the weapon and accidentally shot himself. McPherson himself acknowledged on the 911 call that the gun belonged to him and admitted his fault in the tragic event.
Following the investigation by the St. Louis County Police Department's Crimes Against Persons detectives, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office filed charges against Rayvon McPherson. He faces a charge of first-degree child endangerment resulting in the death of a child. A judge has ordered him to be held on a $250,000 cash-only bond as he awaits further legal proceedings for his role in the devastating loss of his young nephew.
