Braylen Johnson, a 14-year-old Black / African American male from Wilmington, Delaware, died on August 20, 2022, the same day he was celebrating his birthday. Family and obituary information identified him as Braylen “Bray” Ahmed Johnson, born on August 20, 2008, to Abraham S. Johnson-Farnum and Iyesha V. Washam. What should have been a milestone day ended at Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware, after gunfire broke out in Wilmington that night.
The shooting happened around 9:30
p.m. near 6th and North Madison Streets. Police were reportedly responding to another call when they heard gunshots in the area. When officers arrived, they found Braylen and a 20-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds. Both were taken to the hospital, where Braylen died from his injuries. The other victim was reported to be in critical condition.
The violence unfolded during a particularly painful weekend in Wilmington. A few hours after the shooting that killed Braylen, police responded to another shooting on West 27th Street between Market and Tatnall Streets, where four more people were wounded. Authorities described the incidents as separate shootings, but together they left one person dead and five others injured in the city that Saturday night.
Public reports did not identify a suspect or suspects in Braylen’s killing. At the time of the initial reporting, police said no arrests had been made, and later publicly available reporting located for this synopsis did not show any announced arrest, charges, trial, or conviction connected to his death. The case was described as under investigation, with Wilmington police asking anyone with information to contact Detective Brandon Mosley at 302-576-3646.
