Jernard Wheeler

Jernard Wheeler was only 13 years old when he was tragically shot and killed in DeKalb County, Georgia. Jernard was involved in an argument and lost his life during a double shooting that left him dead and another boy critically injured. Four persons were involved in the shooting, including an unnamed sixteen year old, and fifty two year old Viola Goodman with her children - twenty year old James Fanning, and twenty five year old Shontonious Hawkins. It seems that everyone involved had an existing dispute, and a chance encounter led to the incident when the two groups happened to run into each other on McAfee Road off of Candler Road in Atlanta. News articles covering this event are detailed below and can be found at Report: Fourth arrest made in killing of 13-year-old boy, and 4th Person Surrenders In Shooting That Killed 13-Year-Old. An episode (#217) of The First 48 broadcast on July 7th 2011 about this incident is described as: In Dekalb County, Georgia, shots are fired in broad daylight on a residential street, leaving one teenage boy dead and another critically injured. Lead Detective Bruce Brueggeman is shocked to discover that the shooter's mother may have been with him when he pulled the trigger. But forcing the family to give up the suspect is not going to be easy. The four individuals thought to be responsible for the shooting were arrested: Viola; her sons, Shontonious and James, and a 16 year old suspect, and charged with murder and aggravated assault. They were held without bond. The 16 year old had turned himself in. Police thought that he was the actual shooter.