Brandon Charles Adams, 49, died from a gunshot wound on the night of December 13, 2020, at a home on Skyland Drive in Morganton, North Carolina. He was at the residence of long-time friend George Allison, who had been friends with Brandon for nearly 20 years. Brandon’s girlfriend was present and later testified that Brandon was not aggressive and never entered Allison’s house that evening.

Court records say Allison retrieved a shotgun from a bedroom, pointed it at Brandon, and witnesses heard him count down to zero multiple times before firing at Brandon’s chest. The wound proved fatal. Allison, then 65, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. At trial he at first claimed he did not intend to shoot and thought the gun’s safety was on; he later testified that he did what he had to do.

The jury found Allison guilty of second-degree murder after a trial that began October 24, 2022, and he was sentenced to 12 to 15 years. Brandon is survived by his daughters Hannah and Chloe, their mother Donna Adams, his parents Ann and Dexter Adams, and other family.