Tacoma boy, 14, identified as victim of apparent-road rage shooting
The 14-year-old boy who was shot and killed during an apparent road-rage incident in Tacoma has been identified by the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Carlos Arturo Luna of Tacoma died of a gunshot wound to the head on Dec. 5, according to the medical examiner’s public information portal. His manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Tacoma police found the boy that afternoon following reports of a two-car collision in the 6400 block of McKinley Avenue involving a 2020 Kia Sportage and a Scion xB, according to court documents.
Luna was at the wheel of the Kia. Records state he succumbed to his injuries after he was transported to a hospital.
The boy’s uncle wrote in a GoFundMe fundraiser for funeral expenses that the loss of Luna created an “overwhelming” emotional and financial burden for his family.
“Carlos was more than a headline or a statistic,” the uncle wrote. “He was a son, a family member, a friend, and a young soul who deserved the chance to grow, dream, and live a full life.”
A 42-year-old man, Nicholas Prather, was charged with first-degree murder in Pierce County Superior Court for the boy’s death after he turned himself in to the police.
Prather pleaded not guilty at an arraignment hearing Dec. 8, where his attorney argued that the man was defending himself after a person in Luna’s vehicle prepared to pepper spray him. Charging documents alleged that several people ran from the Kia during the incident.
Detectives spoke with the occupants of the KIA and other witnesses who indicated that Luna was driving recklessly before the shooting. According to the probable cause document, the boy passed other drivers on sidewalks and in turn lanes but was unable to pass Prather’s truck.
Individuals in Luna’s vehicle reportedly told police they passed the truck in the center turn lane before the intersection of 64th Street and McKinley Avenue, and Prather flipped them off, records state. When they were stopped at a traffic light, the front passenger of the Kia and Prather reportedly shouted obscenities back and forth.
Surveillance video showed the shooting occurred when Prather passed the Kia at the intersection.
Prather was released from jail Dec. 18 to electronic-home monitoring on a $750,000 bail bond, court records show. Bail was originally set at $1 million.
