In the quiet community of Lawrence County, Tennessee, 21-year-old Aaron Nicholas Stem was known as a member of the Pine Grove Baptist Church and an employee at a local Speedway. A native of the area, he lived in nearby Five Points. The course of his young life came to a tragic end on the evening of Saturday, March 21, 2020.
On that night, at approximately 9:30 p.m., the Lawrenceburg Police Department received calls reporting the sound of gunshots near the B&K Apartments.
When officers arrived at the complex, their search of the area led them to a grim discovery. Behind one of the apartment buildings, they found the body of Aaron Stem. He had been fatally shot, a victim of gun violence at just 21 years old.
The investigation into the shooting quickly pointed to a suspect, a man who was also 21 years old and an acquaintance of the victim. Colby Mason Kilburn, of Lawrenceburg, was identified as the individual responsible for Stem's death. In a surprising turn of events on the night of the murder, Kilburn walked into the lobby of the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department. A corrections officer noted he 'looked like he was in a daze.' Kilburn soon confessed to an officer, stating, 'I shot somebody,' and then clarifying, 'I murdered somebody...I shot them in the head.' He also informed the officer that he had disassembled the firearm he used. It was revealed that Kilburn was a friend of Stem's and would often visit him at the Speedway where he worked.
Colby Mason Kilburn was arrested and charged with the first-degree murder of Aaron Stem. His case went to trial in April 2023 in the Lawrence County Circuit Court. The court proceedings concluded with the jury finding Kilburn guilty of first-degree premeditated murder. For his crime, he received a life sentence. An appeal of the conviction was later filed, but the trial court's judgment was ultimately affirmed.
