MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A man has been convicted of murder and attempted murder in a shooting in Frayser in May 2020 which police said killed an innocent bystander – a woman who was holding her grandson at the time.
According to court records, a Shelby County jury convicted Darrell Peterson of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder (two counts), employing a firearm during a felony (two counts), and being a convicted felon with a firearm.
Peterson will learn his fate when he is sentenced on July 9, 2024, reset from July 1. He also faces charges of aggravated assault in a separate case.
Prosecutors said a group of women had gotten into a fight the afternoon of May 16, 2020, in the 4000 block of Knob Drive in Frayser. They said two of them began smashing windows at one home, and some of those involved had bats and knives. They said the fight was livestreamed on social media.
Prosecutors said at one point Peterson drove up, shouted at people in the crowd, and then fired several shots.
Investigators said 55-year-old Patricia Draper Bryant was in her yard two houses away, holding her baby grandson, when she was struck in the chest. She died at a hospital.
Prosecutors said the fight had begun after an argument on Facebook.
Two women were also charged with vandalism in the incident.