In the small city of Montezuma, Georgia, a Saturday evening argument between two neighbors ended in tragedy, leaving one man dead and another wounded. On September 2, 2017, Willie Lee Laster, a 57-year-old male, was found lying in a yard on T E Moone Street with multiple gunshot wounds. Emergency medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. The quiet neighborhood was disturbed by the sound of gunshots, with one neighbor reporting hearing two initial shots, followed by two more just moments later.
The investigation that followed revealed that Laster and his neighbor, Aaron McDonald, had been involved in a heated argument. The verbal altercation escalated into a physical struggle for a handgun, during which both men were shot. McDonald sustained a gunshot wound to his arm and was transported to a local hospital before being transferred to a medical facility in Macon for further treatment.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was brought in to lead the inquiry into the fatal shooting. In the immediate aftermath, law enforcement officials stated that no charges would be filed until they had the opportunity to confer with the District Attorney's office. While the investigation into Laster's death continued, Aaron McDonald was later arrested and charged with felony murder, malice murder, and aggravated assault in connection with a separate and unrelated fatal stabbing that occurred in November of that same year. No charges were ultimately filed against McDonald in the shooting death of Willie Laster.
