David Lee Burnette, a 51-year-old male, was found deceased in his Athens, Georgia, apartment on June 13, 2019. An investigation by the Athens-Clarke County Police Department revealed he had been fatally shot, and the case was ruled a homicide. The initial investigation suggested that robbery was the likely motive behind the violent act.
Nearly a year later, in May 2020, authorities arrested 24-year-old Willie Tremaine Nickholas Evans in connection with the death of Burnette.
Evans, who had also been a resident of the same University Oaks apartment complex, was charged with murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Following the shooting, Evans had fled to Florida, where he was apprehended on unrelated charges. A significant piece of evidence in the case against him was a firearm found in his possession which forensic analysis indicated was the weapon used in Burnette's death.
In December 2021, Willie Tremaine Nickholas Evans stood trial for the murder of David Lee Burnette. During the weeklong proceedings, the prosecution presented its case, which also explored a potential drug-related motive in addition to the initial robbery theory. Evans maintained his innocence, claiming he had found the gun on the side of the road in Oconee County. Ultimately, the jury acquitted Evans of all charges, including malice and felony murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
Following the acquittal, the investigation into David Lee Burnette's death has become one of Athens-Clarke County's unsolved homicides. No further arrests have been made, and the case officially remains open. In a separate and subsequent legal matter, Willie Tremaine Nickholas Evans was arrested and charged with the murder of another individual in Jefferson, Georgia, in February 2023.
