Boy, 3, Killed by Stray Bullet from 'Celebratory Gunfire' on New Year's Eve

Emily Palmer
·2 min read

The Memphis, Tenn., toddler, Brayden Smith, died of his gunshot wound Jan. 3

<p>Go Fund Me</p> Brayden Smith

Go Fund Me

Brayden Smith

Brayden Smith was with his family New Year's Eve when a bullet passed through their Memphis apartment window, striking the toddler during what police believe was “celebratory gunfire” coming from another part of the complex.

“Celebratory gunfire is illegal and celebratory gunfire leads to tragic events like this,” Memphis Assistant Police Chief Don Crowe said per Memphis’s Action News 5. “And we just have to stop shooting these guns.”

The 3-year-old was rushed from his Edgewater Cove neighborhood to Le Bonheur in critical condition around 6 p.m., the Memphis Police Department confirmed on X, the social media platform previously called Twitter.

Brayden died around 6 a.m. Jan. 3 family friends said on a GoFundMe page created to offset funeral expenses.

“The investigation is ongoing, and our investigators are working tirelessly and diligently to bring those responsible to justice,” police said in a Tweet confirming his death later that day.

Hours after Brayden’s shooting, the Memphis Police Department recorded 327 gunshots on its gunfire detection software between 9 p.m. New Year’s Eve and 3 a.m. New Year's Day, WSAZ News Channel 3 reports. Memphians reported shots fired 195 times in that six-hour period.

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<p>Gun Violence Archives</p> There have been at least 20 unintentional shootings Jan. 1-5, 2024.

Gun Violence Archives

There have been at least 20 unintentional shootings Jan. 1-5, 2024.

In 2023, there were 1,573 unintentional shootings recorded across the country, according to Gun Violence Archive. The online archive has recorded 20 unintentional shootings in the first five days of the new year.

PEOPLE reached out to the Memphis Police Department to confirm if anyone had been arrested or if the department had any persons of interest in the case. A spokesperson declined to comment further on the investigation.

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