A 13-year-old child was murdered when a driver escaping a nearby shooting scene struck his ATV, and a Birmingham man has been charged in connection with the incident.
According to court documents released on Wednesday, Antonio Tremayne Weldon Jr., 24, is accused of reckless manslaughter in connection with the 2024 death of Braylen Bray Hardy, a seventh-grade student and basketball player at Bush Hills STEAM Academy.
Weldon was arrested on a felony charge Tuesday afternoon and is currently being detained on $30,000.
According to the documents, Weldon was intoxicated when he struck Braylen’s ATV.
That Saturday night, October 26, 2024, Braylen was sitting on his four-wheeler on a sidewalk on Avenue E in his father’s neighborhood.
He had just finished riding with his father and brothers, which was a family pastime they enjoyed whenever they could.
Shots were fired close by, in the 2400 block of Avenue D, at approximately 6:45 p.m.
According to Birmingham police, the toddler was struck by a car that was leaving the scene of the incident.
A few blocks from the scene, Birmingham patrol officers apprehended the driver, who was eventually identified as Weldon, after he fled on foot.
Vannessa Riggs, Braylen’s mother, had told AL.com that her son was setting up the ATV for the night.
Braylen had already been brought to Children’s of Alabama when Ruggs arrived at the scene, despite her rapid arrival.
At the hospital, Braylen was placed on a ventilator after his respiration stopped and started a few times.
Braylen suffered injuries to his head and lungs as well as a shattered leg and arm from the collision’s force.
As Riggs once stated, “We were trying to see if God was going to turn it around.”
After several tests revealed no brain activity three days later, the family decided they could no longer bear to watch Braylen suffer.
Briggs stated that the breathing machine was the only thing holding him back. I simply chose to be an angel and let him go.
Braylen enjoyed playing video games and eating, particularly a half-dozen mild wings with Cajun ranch cheese fries. Teachers and administrators adored him, and he liked school as well.
According to his mother, he was just a content child.
Three brothers and a sister, who are also grieving the loss of the gregarious youngster, were left behind by Braylen.
According to his mother, he enjoyed spending time with his family. He was merely a playful child.
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