On a Sunday evening in Villa Rica, Georgia, a dispute between two men escalated into a fatal shootout, leaving one man dead and a bystander wounded. The deceased was identified as 36-year-old Marko Xavier Burton, a male from the nearby city of Douglasville. The incident, which unfolded at the corner of Cleghorn and McCauley streets on May 7, 2017, was the culmination of an earlier conflict between Burton and another man, 31-year-old Julius Walker of Villa Rica.
According to police reports, the confrontation began when Burton arrived at the location and exited his vehicle, armed with a firearm. An argument between Burton and Walker quickly intensified, leading to an exchange of gunfire between the two men. In the crossfire, an innocent bystander was struck by a bullet but was later treated for their injuries and released from a local hospital. Burton, however, sustained at least one gunshot wound and was transported to Tanner Hospital in Villa Rica, where he was pronounced dead. Walker was unharmed in the shootout.
Investigators at the scene discovered that the firearm in Burton's possession had been reported stolen from Paulding County. Following the incident, Julius Walker was taken into custody. While the shooting itself remained under investigation, Walker was arrested on an active warrant for a probation violation. The Villa Rica Police Department continued to seek information from any witnesses who had not yet come forward to provide their account of the events that transpired.
