‘I’m scared to live in my own house’: North Nashville community on edge after Sunday shooting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Metro Police continue to investigate what led to the shooting of a 17-year-old boy on 26th Avenue North on Sunday night.

North Police Precinct officers responded after hearing what they estimate to be between 20 and 30 gunshots in the area of the Cumberland View Apartment Complex just after 7 p.m.

“I feel unsafe here,” long-time resident Rosetta Jones said.

Jones has lived at the Cumberland View Apartments for years, which is a Metro Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) property.

It’s across the street from the Metro Nashville North Police Precinct, but residents say it doesn’t make a difference in what goes on at the complex.

“I’m scared to live in my own house. I’ve been staying down at my brother’s house,” Jones said.

Metro Police say the 17-year-old was rushed to the hospital and into surgery. On last check, the teen was still in critical condition. All three suspects are still on the loose, according to police.

A woman who witnessed the aftermath of what happened Sunday night spoke to WSMV under the condition of anonymity, out of fear for her own life.

“He was just laid out there on the ground,” she told WSMV. “My son and I have been robbed at gunpoint twice since I’ve been over here.”

She says she and her son have had to take cover multiple times before, and she won’t even let her kids play outside due to the threat of gunfire.

“It could’ve been my son,” she said. “We don’t live like this, so I don’t want us to get caught up like that for nothing.”

She and Jones agree while the three suspects remain on the loose, the community is left to remain vigilant.

“I’ve got God, my children and my grandkids, and Lord knows I have to get up out of this place. God has to put me somewhere,” Jones said. “If I have to be in a shelter, I’ll be okay.”

MNPD says their non-lethal shooting section of the Specialized Investigations Division is pursuing leads in the case.