A Memphis man told a woman he was texting that he might have to shoot his roommate in self-defense — and minutes later, he did, according to police.
Darren Cranford, 60, is now charged with first-degree murder in the death of Bruce Reid, his roommate, Shelby County court records reviewed by Law&Crime show. Reid’s age wasn’t listed in the records.
The shooting happened Sunday at the home the two men shared on the 2100 block of Brookline Road. A woman who knew both men was out at a restaurant when she began receiving texts from Cranford indicating that he and Reid were fighting.
“I am going to have to shoot him in self-defense,” Cranford wrote in one of the messages, according to an affidavit filed in the case.
Cranford later told investigators the dispute started because he’d set up a grill too close to Reid’s motorcycle, and that Reid, who he said was drunk, began threatening him over it. The argument reportedly began outside but moved indoors, and it was during that stretch that Cranford sent the texts.
He also told police that at some point during the argument, he grabbed a gun and tucked it under his shirt.
When the woman arrived at the house, she found the two men in the middle of a heated verbal fight. She told investigators she believed Reid was sitting in his room at the time Cranford allegedly opened fire.
Memphis police said officers responded to the home around 3:30 p.m. and found Cranford and the woman inside. Reid was on the ground with a single gunshot wound to the chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Detectives took statements from both the woman and Cranford. According to the affidavit, Cranford claimed that once the woman got to the house, Reid moved toward him aggressively, prompting him to fire a single shot.
Nothing in the affidavit suggests Reid was armed or that he physically attacked Cranford before the shooting.
Cranford was arrested and is being held at the Shelby County Jail without bond. A bond hearing had been set for Wednesday.
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