In the summer of 2024, the life of 13-year-old Daviawn J. Blackmon was tragically cut short on a Wednesday night in Louisville, Kentucky. On the evening of June 26th, police were called to the Chickasaw neighborhood around 10:30 p.m. following reports of a shooting. They discovered the young male in an alley in the 700 block of South 38th Street, near West Broadway.
Daviawn had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The subsequent investigation by the Louisville Metro Police Department's Homicide Unit revealed a grim narrative. Surveillance footage captured the harrowing event, showing that after being shot, Daviawn was robbed as he lay bleeding on the ground. His family, including his mother Dawn Brown, had feared for his safety, acknowledging he was being drawn into gang life. Brown later stated that the suspects were known to her son; one attended the same school, and the other he knew from community programs. She reported that they had come to her house and threatened her son on numerous occasions, prompting her to call the police for help multiple times before the fatal encounter. Family members believed the attack was targeted.
Within a month, authorities made arrests in the case. Two local teenagers, 15-year-old Brad Watkins and 16-year-old Daniel Wallace, were taken into custody and charged as adults for their roles in Daviawn's death. The investigation identified Watkins as the shooter. As the case proceeded through the legal system, both suspects pleaded guilty to various charges. Watkins, the shooter, pleaded guilty to murder and other charges, receiving a 23-year prison sentence. His accomplice, Daniel Wallace, pleaded guilty to facilitation of robbery, tampering with physical evidence, and possession of a handgun by a minor. A judge denied his request for probation and sentenced him for his involvement in the crime that ended the life of another child.
