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Vianca Harris: 15-Year-Old Pregnant Teen Shot To Death By Memphis Man After An Alleged Brawl Broke Out At Apartment Complex

By Angelica N. Sumter
Published on: 12:56 PST, Mar 15, 2016

A pregnant teen’s life was cut short after she was fatally shot in the head with a shotgun at an apartment complex while visiting a friend, according to WREG. At approximately 1 a.m. on Monday, 15-year-old Vianca Harris of Memphis, Tennessee, was found dead in a relative’s home at Valley Forge apartment complex on Hillview Avenue.

It was reported that Harris, who police officials say was four to five weeks pregnant, was visiting a friend with a group of her friends when a fight broke out inside of an apartment. The motive for the altercation has not been released, but witnesses say that “Someone got stabbed in the arm and cut really bad” during the melee.

Memphis police were immediately called to the scene where several of the “people at the apartment complex were detained” for questioning. Those who were detained by the police were later released except for 24-year-old Terry Turner after a witness claimed to have seen the man “pull out a gun from the closet and shoot Harris in the head.”

When Turner was asked about the shooting death of the pregnant Memphis teen, he admitted to shooting Harris but stated that he did not try to intentionally shoot Harris. He went on to say that when he saw Harris playing with the shotgun, he tried to take it away from her. Turner added that as the two were pulling at the gun, Turner claims it went off and struck Harris in the head, killing her.

The pregnant teen’s death marks the 49th homicide that Memphis has had this year. But despite the suspect’s claim, Fox13 Memphis reported that Truner was arrested and charged with second-degree murder for the shooting death of the pregnant teen. The suspect is also facing “additional charges in connection to the murder of the unborn child.”

This isn’t the first time Turner has been in trouble with the law. Sources say that in October 2015, he was arrested on a felony charge and was accidentally placed in a “Jail East where the female inmates where held” because he was dressed as a woman. The following day, it was discovered that Turner was a male and he was immediately moved to “201 Poplar Avenue where the male inmates are held.”

Harris’ mother, Jenell Harris, spoke with reporters and stated that her daughter was taken too soon. She went on to say as she held back tears that “That’s my baby. I’m gonna miss her. I love my baby so much.”

“She was a good girl. She was my baby, you know. She liked to draw, sing, play ball, basketball. She was very creative,” Janell added.

“I’m just tired of all the gun violence. My baby didn’t deserve that. Nobody’s child deserves to be killed. Period. I never knew what you guys went through, the pain that you guys have felt. And now I feel it because I have lost my baby. My baby girl out of six kids, I done lost her.”

Neighbors were stunned after learning that the pregnant teen ended up dead after visiting one of her friends. Yolanda Grove stated, “It’s really sad what happened to that 15-year-old girl losing her life.”

Harris was in her last year at Grandview Heights Middle School where she was on the honor roll and was looking forward to starting school at her local high school next year, according to her mother. Her Facebook page stated that she was an “actor, a fashion model, and a dancer with a bright future” ahead of her until her life was cut short.

Relatives held a special prayer vigil on Tuesday at 6 p.m. for Vianca Harris and her unborn baby at 2318 Slocum in Frayse, and the “public was invited to attend.”

[Image via Shelby County Sheriff’s Office]

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