On a Sunday evening in November 2019, the life of Benjamin Lloyd Cloer, a 26-year-old male, was tragically cut short in Athens, Georgia. A promising University of Georgia graduate student just weeks away from earning his master's degree in artificial intelligence, Cloer was shot multiple times at his residence on Old Jefferson Road. First responders rushed him to a local hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries.
The man responsible for the shooting was identified as Winford 'Trey' Terrell Adams, a 32-year-old off-duty Madison County sheriff's deputy.
The incident unfolded as a result of a domestic dispute. Adams believed that Cloer was having an affair with his wife. Adams' wife was a friend of Cloer's and had been invited to his home for a cookout that day. Using a cell phone application to track his wife's location, Adams went to the residence and entered the home with his firearm. As Cloer attempted to flee, Adams shot him in the hand and twice in the back. After the shooting, it was Adams himself who called 911, confessing to the dispatcher, “I just shot somebody… My wife was cheating on me, and I couldn't take it. I didn't shoot her, I shot the guy. I couldn't stop myself.” He was taken into custody at the scene and was subsequently fired from the Madison County Sheriff's Office.
Following an investigation, a grand jury indicted Winford 'Trey' Terrell Adams on seven felony charges, including malice murder, felony murder, first-degree home invasion, aggravated assault, and firearm possession charges. In March 2022, Adams, then 34, withdrew his initial not guilty plea and pleaded guilty to felony murder and one count of aggravated assault. As a result of his plea, he was sentenced to life in prison. He received an additional 10 years for the assault charge. During the sentencing, Cloer's family members testified, disputing the claim of an affair and expressing their profound loss. They described Benjamin as a compassionate, brilliant, and caring individual whose future was senselessly stolen.
