A black Taurus 9 mm handgun was found outside after a roommate was critically wounded.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A black Taurus 9 mm handgun moved from the center of a rent dispute to the center of a felony case after police said a Memphis man shot his roommate six times.
The weapon is a key item in the charges against Lorenzo Miller, 22, who faces attempted first-degree murder, employing a firearm with intent to commit a felony, tampering with or fabricating evidence, and especially aggravated kidnapping. Police said the gun was used during a May 1 shooting inside an apartment on Parkhurst Court. Investigators later found it outside the apartment near a fence line. The roommate was taken to a hospital in critical condition after officers found him with multiple gunshot wounds.
The affidavit gives two details about where the gun was before the shooting. It says Miller went into the roommate’s bedroom and retrieved the other man’s black Taurus handgun as the men argued. It also says, in a quoted line from the court document, that Miller grabbed a gun from a nearby coffee table. Police did not explain the difference in those descriptions in the available record. Both details point to the same weapon becoming part of the confrontation. The argument was over rent, according to Miller’s girlfriend, who was inside the apartment with the two men. She told investigators that the roommate had not paid his portion.
Once Miller had the gun, police said, the dispute changed from a rent argument into a confinement and shooting case. The affidavit says Miller blocked the door and refused to allow the roommate to leave while the argument continued. That act is central to the especially aggravated kidnapping charge. Police said Miller pointed the gun at the roommate. The roommate then punched Miller in the face, according to investigators. The affidavit does not say the punch ended the threat. Instead, police said the punch was followed by gunfire. Investigators said Miller shot the roommate in the stomach and twice in the shoulder before firing again as the fight continued.
The shooting did not stop after the first wounds, police said. The roommate kept fighting, and Miller shot him once in the leg, according to the affidavit. When the roommate fell to the floor, police said, Miller stood over him and fired at least two more times. Officers later said the roommate appeared to have been shot at least six times. The court record did not include a full medical report, and it did not state whether any bullets were removed at the hospital. Police described the roommate’s condition as critical after he was transported from the Parkhurst Court apartment to a nearby hospital.
The gun’s location after the shooting became another part of the case. Investigators said they found the black Taurus 9 mm handgun outside the apartment near a fence line. The affidavit does not say whether the gun was hidden, thrown or placed there. It also does not state whether police recovered fingerprints, DNA or shell casings tied to the weapon. Still, the gun’s recovery helped support the tampering with or fabricating evidence charge, which accuses a person of altering, concealing or affecting evidence in a case. Police did not say whether anyone else had access to the gun after the shots were fired.
Miller was still near the scene when officers arrived, according to the affidavit. Police found him in the breezeway of the apartment building and arrested him. The record does not describe a chase, a standoff or a search for a fleeing suspect. That left investigators to focus on what happened inside the unit, what witnesses said and how the gun ended up near the fence. Miller’s girlfriend identified him as the person responsible for shooting the roommate, police said. Investigators also said Miller confessed to shooting the roommate after being assaulted by him. The available record does not give Miller’s full version of events.
The wounded roommate later gave police an identification from the hospital side of the investigation. The day after the shooting, police said, he viewed a six-person photo lineup and picked out Miller as his roommate and the person who shot him. That identification matched the girlfriend’s account and Miller’s alleged admission. The affidavit does not say how long the roommate had known Miller or whether he gave police a separate spoken account of the rent dispute. It also does not name the roommate. Police did not say whether the roommate remained in critical condition after the lineup or whether he was expected to recover.
The case brings together a common household setting and serious felony counts. Parkhurst Court is described in the affidavit only as the location of the apartment. The record does not provide details about the lease, rent amount or whether the roommate was behind by days, weeks or longer. It does not state who owned the handgun, beyond the affidavit’s statement that Miller retrieved the other man’s black Taurus. It does not say why the firearm was accessible during the argument. Those missing details are likely to matter as prosecutors and defense counsel examine the sequence of events, the statements and the physical evidence.
The charging decision shows that police viewed the shooting as intentional and repeated. Attempted first-degree murder is tied to the claim that Miller fired several times, including after the roommate fell. The firearm charge is tied to the alleged use of the Taurus 9 mm during the felony. The kidnapping charge is tied to the blocked doorway. The tampering charge is tied to what happened to evidence after the shooting. The combination of counts gives prosecutors several paths to present the case, but each charge still must be proven in court. Miller is presumed innocent unless convicted.
The first known court step was scheduled for May 5. At that hearing, the case was expected to enter the early court process after the arrest. The available report did not provide a bond amount, plea, assigned judge or defense attorney. It also did not say whether prosecutors had filed additional documents beyond the affidavit. Investigators may still seek lab results on the gun, hospital records documenting the wounds and any recorded calls or video from the apartment complex. None of those items were described in the available record.
For now, the black Taurus 9 mm remains the physical object that links the apartment argument, the shooting and the evidence charge. Police said it was present when the rent dispute escalated, used when the roommate was wounded and recovered outside near the fence line after officers arrived. The case now turns on how prosecutors connect that weapon to the witness accounts and to Miller’s alleged statement.
The case’s next public milestone listed in the record was his May 5 appearance. Miller remained charged as the case moved toward its early court stage.
Author note: Last updated May 24, 2026.