In a country that values guns over children, it’s no surprise that tragic stories such as the one Tia Hernlen lives with are common and continue to grow in number. From 1993 to 2011, gun violence accounted for about 70% of all homicides. Among those murdered during this time period include Aeneas Hernlen and Julie Hernlen, while their young daughter, Tia Hernlen, was inside the house.
Who Is Tia Hernlen?
Tia Hernlen is the daughter of Julie Hernlen and Aeneas Hernlen. She became publicly known after she called 9-1-1 to report that she found her parents “bleeding” after hearing gunshots. At the tiny age of five years old, she previously experienced a happy childhood with her parents in a safe environment, despite living in Florida.
How Old is Tia Hernlen?
Tia Hernlen was born in 2000. As of 2025, She is now 25-year old.
Read more: Five-Year-Old Calls 911 – What Happened to Tia Hernlen’s Parents?
What Happened to Tia Hernlen?
On March 28, 2005, Hernlen and her parents were sleeping when the man who would soon become a murderer broke into their home, a cowardly tactic also used by police officers when they murder innocent civilians. The man in question was David Edwad Johnson, a thirty-three-year-old who apparently held a grudge against Hernlen’s parents for allegedly reporting his illegal activities to authorities. Johnson misplaced anger onto the parents, and used a gun to murder them before shooting himself.
Then-five-year-old Tia Hernlen head the gunshots and called 9-1-1, telling the operator that her parents were “bleeding.” Tragically, both of her parents passed away. Previous media covering the story describe Hernlen as incredibly brave, referring to her calmness when she called for help and her reliance while growing up with trauma instead of parents.
Afterwards, Hernlen went to live under the care of extended family, who smartly chose to shield her from the spotlight of media attention, rather than exploit the story for profit as countless “influencer” parents do today.
Tia Hernlen Today Update: Where is She Now?
None of our business. As of July 2025, Hernlen grew up largely out of the public eye. She deserves to have her privacy respected, so kindly don’t go digging for more information on someone who does not want a spotlight pointed at them.
Instead, take a moment to reflect upon the consequences of gun violence. A little girl was forced to grow up not only with the trauma of loss, but that of waking up to gunshots when the murder occurred and finding her parents. Nearly 47,000 people in the United States died from gun-related injuries in 2023 alone, leaving thousands more to grieve their loss. Tia Hernlen’s story is one of too many to count, and every day, a new person gets killed or must deal with the aftermath of losing a loved one because someone got their hands on a gun when they shouldn’t have been able to, which happens in more ways than one. After having a tragic loss inflicted upon them- not only the loss of loved ones, but sometimes the loss of body parts, safe spaces, and mental/emotional stability- media attention often makes recovery more difficult for survivors.
To say that Tia Hernlen’s current status is none of our business means respecting that no one deserves to be hounded by the media, even if the media attention comes with good intentions. Her surviving family wished for her to keep as much privacy as she could, and unless she explicitly expresses a desire to share her story, life updates, or other personal information, doing the right thing means stifling whatever curiosities we may want answered and accept that someone else’s life- and especially their tragedies- belongs to them, not to strangers. One person’s interesting story is another’s reopened wound.
FAQ’s
Does Tia Hernlen have an Instagram account?
No, you won’t find a verified Instagram account for Tia Hernlen.
Does Tia Hernlen have a Wikipedia page?
No, you won’t find a Wikipedia page for Tia Hernlen—there is currently no official Wikipedia entry under her name. Most information comes from news articles and personal blogs, not a verified encyclopedia profile.
Sources
Planty, Ph.D., Micheal; Truman, Ph.D., Jennifer. “Firearm Violence, 1993-2011.” BJS Special Reports. Published May 01, 2013. Accessed July 07, 2025. https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/firearm-violence-1993-2011
Gramlich, John. “What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S.” Pew Research Center. Published March 05, 2025. Accessed July 07, 2025. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/03/05/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-us/
