In a tragic and sudden act of violence, 20-year-old Zoey Nicole Messenger of Dallas, Georgia, was fatally shot on the evening of Wednesday, September 20, 2023. The incident occurred inside the Walmart Supercenter on Jimmy Lee Smith Parkway in Hiram, Georgia, a small town about 20 miles northwest of Atlanta. The perpetrator was identified as her 26-year-old ex-boyfriend, James Wyatt Nicholas Norton, a resident of Hiram and an employee of the store.
The shooting took place at approximately 7:15 PM, sending shoppers scrambling for safety. Norton approached Messenger, with whom he had recently ended a relationship, in one of the store's aisles. According to the Hiram Police Department, the two engaged in a brief conversation that did not appear to be angry or animated. In a shocking turn of events, Norton then pulled out a handgun, shot Messenger, and subsequently turned the gun on himself.
First responders arrived to a scene of chaos, with people fleeing the store. They located both Messenger and Norton in an aisle with gunshot wounds and a handgun nearby. Both were in critical condition and transported to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital, where they succumbed to their injuries. Investigators confirmed that Norton was the aggressor in what was determined to be a murder-suicide. The Hiram Police Department noted that they had no prior records of domestic violence calls or threats involving the former couple.
