GERMANTOWN, Tenn. — A four-year-old child found a gun and pulled the trigger.
Now his mother has a strong message to other parents, as she mourns his sudden death: Put the guns up.
Tre Anderson was mesmerized with Spiderman. He begged his mom to let him sleep in his face paint and costume.
“He called himself Peter Parker,” she said. “You know, he tought he was Spiderman. Peter Parker. The whole thing.”
His mother didn’t want to show her face during our interview, because she’s been crying so much.
“He was my only son. He was perfect,” she said.
On June 22, her pefect, loving child got hold of a gun.
That day, Tre was at his father’s family home on South Germantown Road. His mother was on the way to pick him up.
“Then nine minutes later, I got the call. I was right there,” she said. “I was banging on the doors. I got in there, and I see my baby lifeless, shot. I just fell. I couldn’t do nothing for him. I couldn’t do nothing for him.”
Tre didn’t survive. His life ended less than a week before his fifth birthday.
Germantown Police spent hours trying to piece together what happened. They say their initial investigation indicates it was not an intentional act. They are working to get more info including the autopsy report.
“We need results. Not excuses,” said Tre’s maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Covington.
She is frustrated and wants to know how Tre got the gun.
“The system can’t get it right. The system cannot protect our children. They are going to have to put the guns up and be held accountable,” Covington said.
Police haven’t said who was in the home at the time of the shooting, but the family says he was with his father, Jerry Anderson. He was at his parents’ home.
That’s not all. Jerry Anderson was also out on bond for several counts of attempted first-degree murder.
Memphis police say in July 2020, Anderson and three others were in a car when they were reportedly “shooting multiple rounds” at a home on McLemore Avenue in Memphis.
MPD said they then “came back” a few hours later and shot into the house again. Police said they counted 130 spent shell casings. Three were injured, including a toddler.
Germantown Police said they will not release information about the gun. The criminal court clerk’s office says there’s nothing in Anderson’s case file on whether he could be around a gun while on bond.
Tre’s teacher told his mom there needs to be more Tres in the world.
He was smart, funny and spread happiness with that contagious smile. He hugged strangers who were having a bad day.
They say a superhero is someone who uses his powers to make the world a better place.
In his short life, he did just that.
“Put the guns up. I understand that we have to protect ourselves when we’re put in situations. When you are in the comfort of your home, you’re around loved ones, what’s the need for it out?” Tre’s mother said.