Murfreesboro juvenile suspect accused of Oct. 9 murder will be ‘tried as an adult’
A 17-year-old murder suspect arrested by Murfreesboro police after an 11-hour standoff on East Castle Street “will be tried as an adult,” Judge Travis Lampley ruled Dec. 3.
The decision in Lampley Juvenile Court follows the judge presiding over a two-hour hearing regarding the juvenile suspect, who is charged in the October fatal shooting of 26-year-old Kentrell London.
Rutherford County Juvenile Court Judge Travis Lampley
The judge heard two witnesses, including a relative of the suspect. The suspect wore a juvenile detention jumpsuit with gray and white horizontal stripes. He also wore small bandages on his nose and above his left eyebrow.
The suspect remained quiet and calm while looking around the judge’s courtroom which is connected to the Rutherford County Juvenile Detention Center off South Church Street in Murfreesboro.
The suspect’s relative confirmed he agreed to testify about the homicide after prosecutors promised they would seek the relative’s release from the same juvenile detention center.
Another witness was Murfreesboro Police Detective Matthew Coe.
The judge listened to the detective’s testimony about the Oct. 9 shooting death of Kentrell London, 26, on the porch of a family member’s home on North Academy Street.
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Evidence includes video and GPS data from ankle monitor
Judge Lampley reviewed evidence that included videos, the detective said, that showed the suspect recorded on the streets, a vape store and homes.
The evidence also included GPS tracking data from an ankle monitor the suspect wore under a previous juvenile court order, Lampley said.
The evidence showed “as clearly as possible” that “the state has assumed the burden of probable cause” for the 17-year-old to be charged with first-degree murder as an adult, the judge concluded.
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The judge heard the state’s case presented by two Rutherford County prosecutors: Assistant Prosecutors Trevor Lynch and Jon Cameron.
The detective’s testimony regarding the ankle monitor included GPS data showing the exact location where two shots were fired on Oct. 9 that killed the victim, the judge said.
The 17-year-old suspect will remain in juvenile detention until his 18th birthday before being transferred for booking at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center in Murfreesboro, Judge Lampley said.
A grand jury will consider indicting the suspect as an adult on the first-degree murder charges, the judge added.
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GPS evidence reveals E’s house. Castle St.
A damaged home in East Castle on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, after an alleged murder suspect barricaded himself inside, forcing Murfreesboro police to use excessive force to remove him from the premises, earlier in the month.
The judge cited testimony from a relative regarding an exchange of hostile remarks between the victim and suspect in a subsequent phone call, expressing a desire to fight with the victim “because he had spit on my brother.”
Detective Coe also testified about obtaining an arrest warrant and a search warrant to apprehend the suspect after GPS evidence showed the suspect was at a home on East Castle Street.
A witness also identified the suspect as the shooter, Coe said.
11-hour standoff between suspect and police
After clearing the East Castle Street home of anyone else, police spent about 11 hours trying to apprehend the suspect who remained in hiding. Police used a drone camera to track the suspect hiding in an attic behind a fireplace, according to testimony. The suspect grabbed the drone and walked through it into the living room, Coe testified.
The suspect’s relative also suggested that police used tear gas to apprehend the suspect.
The detective described police using chemical methods to apprehend the suspect Oct. 10 at the home on East Castle Street.
This is a developing story.
A damaged home in East Castle on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, after an alleged murder suspect barricaded himself inside, forcing Murfreesboro police to use excessive force to remove him from the premises, earlier in the month.
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Contact reporter Scott Broden with news tips or questions by emailing him at sbroden@dnj.com. To support his work with The Daily News Journal, purchase a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared in the Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: A 17-year-old juvenile suspect in October’s Murfreesboro murder will be tried as an adult.
