On May 14, 2025, the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) charged 24-year-old Jordan A. Smith with criminal homicide in connection with the fatal shooting of 26-year-old Dana Corley. The incident occurred near the intersection of 16th Avenue South and Wedgewood Avenue, close to Belmont University.
According to MNPD, Corley was found deceased in the driver’s seat of a black Nissan Altima that had crashed into a tree at approximately 4:30 a.m. He had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. Witnesses reported hearing gunshots in the area between 10:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. the previous night. Investigators recovered Corley’s phone near Wedgewood and 21st Avenues, but his wallet was missing, leading authorities to consider robbery as a potential motive.
Smith and Corley were acquaintances, and the circumstances leading up to the shooting are still under investigation. Smith has been formally charged with criminal homicide and is currently in custody.
Corley’s family has expressed profound grief over his death, noting the tragic parallel to the unsolved 2014 murder of his father, Dana Mayo, who was also found shot to death in his car. Corley had faced challenges in his early life, including the incarceration of both parents and serving eight years in prison for robbery. However, since his release in 2020, he had been working two jobs and was described by family members as having turned his life around.
The MNPD continues to investigate the case and urges anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463.