Prosecutors won’t charge security guards who shot, killed man outside Nashville bar
Nashville TN September 26, 2023 Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk will not prosecute two security guards who shot and killed an armed patron in the parking lot of a Midtown Nashville bar, WSMV4 Investigates has confirmed.
Security guards Beck Wandrei and Kelvin Torres shot 33-year-old Patrick Charles on June 10 after police say Charles and others got into an argument inside a Demonbreun Street bar that spilled out into a parking lot. Police said Charles fired shots, which led to Wandrei and Torres firing at him, killing him.
Prosecutors said the shooting would not be prosecuted because Wandrei and Torres were acting in defense of others when they shot Charles.
“The video evidence … shows that Mr. Charles was discharging his firearm and presenting a danger of death or serious bodily injury to others at the time Mr. Wandrei and Mr. Torres acted to stop the threat,” Deputy District Attorney Roger D. Moore wrote in a letter to a Nashville detective. “Therefore, this case will not be presented to the Davidson County Grand Jury for prosecution.”
Family has disputed claims it was a justified shooting.
“My heart is torn into a thousand pieces because my son didn’t deserve this,” Charles’ mother, Sandra Booker said in June, adding that Charles was protecting his sister and fiancé. “I just want justice.”
The DA’s letter also states that Jack Byrd III, the owner of another security company, will not be prosecuted for picking up Charles’ gun, taking it away from the crime scene and putting it in his personal vehicle.
WSMV4 Investigates also reported that Byrd was wearing a police vest at the time, although he is not police.
The DA’s letter acknowledges concern that Byrd was tampering with evidence.
Prosecutors determined that they could not prove that Byrd intended to tamper with evidence, and that he instead helped preserve the weapon.
