3-year-old Boy Dies From Gunshot Wound, Babysitter Charged

A 3-year-old boy was shot in the head inside his babysitter’s apartment in Georgia Teen Allegedly ‘Pointed Gun at Friends’ Before Fatally Shooting 12-Year-Old in Bedroom. The incident unfolded on Easter Sunday. His babysitter has been charged with felony murder and was taken into custody. A second suspect remains at large.

According to Atlanta News First and Fox 5 Atlanta, Armani Deshawn Lyons, 3, was in the care of Barbara Edwards, 71, when the shooting occurred.

At around 12:37 a.m. on April 5, officers responded to a call about a shooting near the 900 block of Washington Street SW. According to the Atlanta Police Department, when the officers arrived at the scene, the boy was found suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.

He was taken to the hospital immediately, where he was pronounced dead, according to the police release. Shortly after, homicide investigators took over the case to obtain an arrest warrant for Edwards and a second person, identified as Jermaine Hardeman, 35.

Both have been charged with felony murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and cruelty to children in the second degree. According to the press release, on April 13, police received a call about a wanted person.

Edwards was taken into custody from a home on Landrum Drive. However, Hardeman is still at large. According to a report from Atlanta News First, Assistant Police Chief Carvan Tyrus said, "Somehow that 3-year-old ends up with a gunshot wound to the head."

Atlanta News First reported that the boy’s mother said she is devastated. She said, “I’m not gonna see him again. No more laughing. No more playing. No more nothing.”

Dinisha Lyons said she was heading to work at the airport, which is why she left Armani at the babysitter’s apartment for the first time in a while. However, just a few hours later, police called her and asked her to go to Grady Memorial Hospital.

She said the boy was a happy child who was obsessed with Spider-Man and monster trucks. “Why you do it? What did he, a 3-year-old, do to you to make you shoot him?” the grieving mother asked, and is now determined to get justice for her child.

A GoFundMe page has been set up in honor of the boy to cover his funeral expenses. The post read, “Our hearts are completely broken… Armani was full of life, joy, and innocence. He was only 3 years old and would have been turning 4 on May 3.”

The investigation is ongoing.