Woodfin Urges Parents to Monitor Kids After 15-Year-Old's Accidental Shooting by Peer

15-year-old Accidentally Shot by Friend in Minivan; Mayor Woodfin Urges Parents to Stay Vigilant

A 15-year-old boy was tragically killed earlier this month when his friend accidentally discharged a handgun while trying to unload it inside a minivan in which they and other juveniles had been joyriding all night.

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin addressed the incident at the city council meeting on Tuesday, urging parents and guardians to monitor their children closely.

“This is sad. This is tragic,” Woodfin said. “It’s extremely important for parents to know where their child is, who they are with, and what’s in the vehicle.”

Prentice Lovell Little, an Adamsville teen and Minor High School student, was killed on July 7 on the city’s east side.

Just before 7 a.m. that Sunday, South Precinct officers responded to a report of a person with a gunshot wound arriving at UAB Hospital. They discovered that a minivan had brought Prentice to the emergency room, where he was pronounced dead at 8:28 a.m.

The shooting took place in the 9200 block of Parkway East, between Walmart and Wells Fargo, near a small strip of businesses. Authorities previously indicated that the mishandling of the gun led to Prentice’s death.

Woodfin explained that a group of five teens—one 18-year-old and the rest under 17—had been driving around all night. Around 6:30 a.m., they found themselves on the eastern side of town. As they pulled into a parking lot, a 14-year-old attempted to clear a Glock handgun inside the minivan, which discharged and killed Prentice. All of those inside the car were friends or family.

The 14-year-old was taken into custody at the youth detention facility. The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office ruled the death a homicide, indicating one person died at the hands of another, though Woodfin stressed that it was an accident.

“It wasn’t an actual homicide; it was a criminally negligent homicide,” Woodfin said.

The mayor spoke with the parents of those involved, who were unaware that the children had been out all night, riding around until dawn, and that there was a gun in the car.

“I implore our parents in this community to always know where your children are,” Woodfin said. “Government cannot be everywhere. We can’t be in every vehicle. That’s not a realistic expectation.”

“This is tragic,” he continued. “One child lost his life, and another child has to be held accountable, but the ripple effect for all the boys in that car is immense. I don’t know the emotional toll of that and what they have to live with for the rest of their lives.”