Brandon Risner

Brandon Christopher Risner was born in approximately 2001 and grew up in Georgia. He attended North Forsyth High School in Cumming, where he became friends with Aaron William Davis.

The two were close enough that Risner had stayed at the Davis family home numerous times. They had also belonged to the same Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints congregation as teenagers.

Risner later attended Brigham Young University-Idaho for one semester in 2021. Before his arrest, he was pursuing an acting career and worked as a scare actor at a haunted house in Canton, Georgia.

Risner's only confirmed murder was the killing of Aaron William Davis.

On November 11, 2022, Davis travelled to Rome, Georgia, to spend time with Risner before continuing to Alabama to visit his girlfriend. The two friends went out drinking before returning to Risner's home.

Later that night, Davis was killed inside the house. Risner stabbed him repeatedly, ultimately inflicting approximately 40 stab wounds. He then dismembered Davis's body.

Risner moved the remains from the house and buried them in a remote area beneath a fallen tree. Investigators later recovered Davis's body from the makeshift grave.

Risner attacked Davis with a knife while his longtime friend was staying at his home.

After the killing, he attempted to conceal the crime by dismembering the body, moving the remains away from the house and burying them.

He also attempted to destroy evidence inside the home. Prosecutors said Risner purchased cleaning supplies from Walmart and cleaned blood from a mattress, carpet, rug and ceiling.

He also attempted to dispose of Davis's vehicle by driving it to an area near Heritage Park and trying to submerge it.

Davis's family became concerned when he failed to arrive in Alabama and could no longer be reached.

Police subsequently discovered his Toyota Prius abandoned near Heritage Park in Rome. The investigation led officers to Risner's home, where evidence indicated that a violent crime had occurred.

Davis's body was found buried beneath several inches of dirt near Tumlin Drive.

Risner initially fled from police during the investigation but was subsequently taken into custody. He was charged with murder, aggravated assault, concealing the death of another and obstruction of law enforcement.

Risner was originally scheduled to stand trial for the murder.

Instead, on June 20, 2024, he pleaded guilty to 12 charges, including malice murder, two counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, concealing the death of another, abandonment of a dead body, theft by taking, removal of body parts from the scene of a death, tampering with evidence and obstruction of an officer.

At his July 18, 2024 sentencing hearing, prosecutors described the killing and subsequent attempts to conceal the crime. Risner was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

The murder was particularly shocking to the Davis family because Risner had been considered a close family friend. Aaron's father said Risner had been treated almost like another son, making the betrayal especially devastating.

Prosecutors said Risner had consumed cannabis edibles before the killing and experienced what he described as a vision or an urge telling him that he needed to kill his best friend. At sentencing, Assistant District Attorney Leah Mayo said Risner had acted on that urge.

Risner's attorneys requested mental-health evaluations during the proceedings. His mental state was therefore an important consideration in the case, although he ultimately pleaded guilty and received life without parole.

The case was later featured in A&E's Crime in Progress, which examined the murder, the police investigation and the discovery of Davis's abandoned vehicle.

Sources:

• Rome Police Department
• Floyd County Sheriff's Office, District Attorney's Office, Superior Court
• Georgia Bureau of Investigation
• North Forsyth High School
• A&E
• Court TV
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• KSL
• Deseret News