WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Warner Robins police say a family argument led to a teen shooting and killing his father Tuesday night.
Milagros Purnell says she watched her grandson pull the trigger to kill her son.
She says the shooting was truly unexpected.
The neighborhood knows Milagros Purnell as "Mama Mary."
"Mama Mary, that's Sensei's mom, Jeremiah's grandmother. That's where we go and kind of play cards. That's just where everything happens at," said neighbor Kendrick Brown.
According to Milagros, her 16-year-old grandson Jeremiah Purnell shot her son, 35-year-old Darryson Purnell.
Kendrick Brown lives just feet away from the home where Darryson died.
"An altercation with their family broke out and stuff went sideways, people got shot, people died, people lost their life," Brown said.
Warner Robins police say just after 7 p.m. Tuesday, they responded to Virginia Drive where they found a man unconscious after being shot.
They said it all started when the man and an 18-year-old woman got into a fight.
Then, the man's 16-year-old shot him.
The woman suffered minor injuries after being wounded by bullet fragments.
Brown says Jeremiah Purnell was part of a group of boys he mentored to do the right things
"In this neighborhood, guns and drugs, it's over here. This is the real hood, it's not a joke, so every day, I'm risking my life for kids younger than me to try and tell them what's right," Brown said.
He says what happened can't be undone, but there will always be a lasting memory.
"It's just a message to everyone out there. A life is easy to take, but the pain that it brings is hard to deal with," said Brown.
Purnell also said her grandson shot his father in front of her, and if she had not moved, she says she would have also been shot.
William Kendall, Houston County's acting district attorney, says the juvenile had his first court appearance Wednesday.
He faces charges of felony murder and two counts of aggravated assault.