Athens man dies from injuries sustained in weekend drive-by shooting near UGA campus

IJa’ Vanni McDavid with his mother in a photo posted to his Facebook page in 2021

By Joe Johnson

An Athens man has died from injuries he suffered during a weekend drive-by shooting that targeted a house party near the University of Georgia campus.

A suspect who already is in custody for the incident will now have charges against him upgraded to murder, according to the Athens-Clarke County Police Department.

ACCPD said in a news release that they were informed by the hospital on Thursday that 24-year-old Ja’ Vanni McDavid had succumbed to having been shot in the head.

The suspected shooter, 19-year-old Anthony Quinn Brown, had already been in custody on an aggravated assault charge, which police said will now be upgraded to murder.

Anthony Quinn Brown

Lt. Shaun Barnett, spokesperson for ACCPD, said that the incident was being investigated as a possible gang shooting in which bullets were fired from a car at the house at 135 Northview Drive.

A surveillance camera at the residence took images of gunfire coming from a white sedan, which drove off when a 20-year-old male came out and returned fire with a handgun, according to a police incident report.

At least one neighboring house and a vehicle reportedly were damaged during the shooting.

By the time shooting stopped, more than 40 rounds had been fired, according to police.

The investigation was ongoing, and police asked for anyone with information regarding the incident to contact Detective Paul Johnson at 762-400-7060 or paul.johnson@accgov.com.