Jarrin Lee Davis, a 30-year-old Black man known to some as "Jay," was remembered as a silly, goofy, but serious person who had attended Scott County High School. His life was cut short in the early morning hours of March 20, 2024, in Radcliff, Kentucky.
The incident began to unfold around 3:30 a.m. at an apartment complex on Knox Boulevard, where neighbors heard screaming and loud noises coming from one of the units. Another neighbor, Gordie Carpenter, recalled hearing gunshots.
“Before I could stand up, gunshots went off,” Carpenter said. “I just got on the phone and called the police.” The Radcliff Police Department was dispatched to the scene for a domestic disturbance call around 4:30 a.m. and discovered Jarrin in the parking lot, where he had been fatally shot.
The investigation quickly zeroed in on a suspect, 23-year-old Nicholas Vandergrift, who had reportedly fled the apartment by escaping through a back window. A coordinated search involving the Kentucky State Police and officers from the Vine Grove and Shepherdsville police departments was launched. Less than two hours after the initial call, authorities located Vandergrift a few blocks from the scene and took him into custody. “We are glad that the suspect was almost immediately located in a quick time because we certainly don't want anyone out in the community who is a danger to himself or others,” said Radcliff Police Captain Willie Wells.
Following his arrest, Nicholas Vandergrift was lodged in the Hardin County Detention Center. He was later indicted on charges of murder, tampering with physical evidence, and fourth-degree assault in connection with Jarrin’s death. Vandergrift, now 24, went on trial for these charges in Hardin Circuit Court. According to the latest available reports, the trial was underway, but a verdict had not yet been reached.
