Javon Malik Brown was 23 when he was killed on the evening of May 8, 2020. Known for his singing, dancing and community theater work in Asheville and for his strong Christian faith, Javon had studied culinary arts and loved cooking. Family remembered him as someone who could lift others and who dreamed of a family and a home with a white picket fence.

Police say Javon and 19-year-old Deonte James Ellison were inside a vehicle in the Wendy’s parking lot on Merrimon Avenue around 9:15 p.m. when a dispute preceded gunfire. Javon was found in the lot with multiple gunshot wounds and died at the scene; Deonte was later located in a crashed vehicle and died at Mission Hospital. Investigators initially identified two persons of interest who fled the crash. By May 21, 2020, 18-year-old Amar Colia Clark had been arrested and charged with first-degree murder and robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with both deaths; a juvenile was charged on May 18 with accessory after the fact to first-degree murder.

Javon’s mother described receiving the call that he had been shot and said her faith has helped her through the grief.