MEMPHIS MOM ALLEGEDLY SHOT MAN FOUND UNDER CHILD’S BED
A Memphis mother allegedly shot a man she found under her child’s bed, police said. Kendra Scott was charged with first-degree murder.
Scott, 36, was arrested at the scene on July 16, 2026, after officers responded to a shooting on Travis Road in Memphis’ Walker Homes neighborhood, the Memphis Police Department said.
Police said officers found a man with a gunshot wound, and he died at the scene. WREG identified him as 20-year-old Rodderius Morton.
Scott told police she found the man under her child’s bed and “did what I had to do,” according to an affidavit cited by Action News 5.
What police said happened
Officers responded at about 1:50 a.m., police said. Scott was arrested at the scene and later charged.
Police said the child told officers that Scott found Morton under a bed and allegedly shot him as he was leaving the home, FOX13 Memphis reported.
Police also said Morton did not have a weapon, according to the same report.
The legal questions
Self-defense expert Buddy Smith, a retired law enforcement officer, weighed in on the affidavit, PEOPLE reported.
“The affidavit does not allege that he threatened the mother or anyone else at that time, and those alleged facts will likely be important issues for the court, and ultimately a jury,” Smith said.
What happened next
Scott was charged with first-degree murder and employing a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, police said.
She appeared in court on July 20, 2026, and a judge set her bond at $100,000. The judge scheduled her next court date for August 3, 2026.
