On May 23, 2021, authorities in Independence, Missouri, discovered the body of 72-year-old Billy Dean Davis following reports of a vehicle collision and gunfire in the early morning hours. Police were dispatched around 6:30 a.m. to the 500 block of South Ash Avenue, where they found a Jeep Renegade that had crashed into a parked vehicle. Inside the SUV, officers discovered Davis and a second victim, 35-year-old Ashley D. Walker, both suffering from gunshot wounds.
The vehicle was riddled with bullet holes, with the driver's side window and rear glass shattered. Both victims were transported to a hospital where they subsequently died from their injuries.
Investigators located the primary crime scene in an alley behind a residence on North Huttig Avenue, where they recovered over a dozen shell casings and shattered glass. Two children who had been riding bicycles in the area told police they heard the sound of a gun being racked and shots fired shortly after a man walked out of a nearby house. Witness statements and forensic evidence led detectives to identify the suspect as Steven B. Turner Jr., a 44-year-old man from Higginsville, Missouri. Authorities learned that Turner had a contentious history with Davis and had allegedly shot at him on two previous occasions, though he was reportedly friends with Walker.
A manhunt for Turner concluded on May 26, 2021, when Independence police, assisted by SWAT and U.S. Marshals, located him at an apartment building in Kansas City. During the operation, Turner attempted to dispose of evidence by throwing a Glock 10mm handgun out of a third-story window before being taken into custody. Ballistics testing later confirmed that the firearm matched the shell casings found at the scene of the double homicide, as well as casings from five other shooting incidents in the Kansas City area over the preceding two years. following his arrest, Turner admitted to the shooting, claiming he targeted Davis due to an ongoing dispute but was unaware that Walker was inside the vehicle at the time.
Legal proceedings against Turner culminated several years later. Originally charged with two counts of first-degree murder, Turner reached a plea agreement in the spring of 2025. He pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree involuntary manslaughter, and armed criminal action. In September 2025, a Jackson County judge sentenced Turner to life in prison for the murder convictions, with additional consecutive sentences of 15 years for armed criminal action and 10 years for involuntary manslaughter.
