On the afternoon of December 7, 2025, a tragic sequence of events unfolded in the parking lot of a Bojangles restaurant in Palmetto, Georgia, resulting in the death of Dominique Ahmad Goodman. The 43-year-old African American male had driven to the location on Roosevelt Highway after receiving a distressing phone call from his teenage daughter, Amari, who was employed at the establishment. She reached out to her father for assistance because she was reportedly being bullied and harassed by her shift manager. Motivated by a desire to protect his child, Goodman arrived at the scene around 1:15 p.m. to address the situation, but the encounter quickly turned deadly.
Goodman was well-regarded in his community as a dedicated family man who worked multiple jobs, including positions at a Honda dealership and a law office, to support his five children and an expectant partner. His presence at the restaurant was a direct response to his daughter's plea for help. Investigators determined that the manager involved in the dispute had been instructed to leave the premises earlier that day but had instead chosen to wait in the parking lot armed with a gun. When Goodman approached the manager's vehicle to speak with him, the confrontation escalated, and the manager exited his car and fired multiple shots, striking Goodman and killing him at the scene.
Law enforcement officers responded rapidly to the reports of gunfire and discovered Goodman deceased in the parking lot. They immediately took the suspect, identified as 34-year-old Maurice Nolan Evans, into custody. Evans, who was the shift manager mentioned by Goodman's daughter, reportedly admitted to the shooting when police arrived. He was subsequently charged with murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Evans was held without bond, leaving Goodman's family and friends to grapple with the senseless loss of a father who had simply been trying to ensure his daughter's safety just weeks before the holidays.
