A dispute between two neighbors at a Carrollton apartment complex ended in gunfire Sunday night, leaving a 24-year-old man dead and a 28-year-old man facing murder charges. Officers found the victim suffering from gunshot wounds after responding to a shots-fired call, and he later died after being taken to the hospital. Police say the man detained at the scene told them he was involved in the shooting.
According to WSB-TV, police have identified the victim as 24-year-old Malachi Smith and the arrested suspect as 28-year-old Matthew Durrett. Carrollton Police Lt. Blake Hitchcock confirmed the two men lived in the same apartment building and had been involved in several past disputes before Sunday night's confrontation turned deadly. Durrett reportedly identified himself to arriving officers as the person who shot Smith, and he has since been charged with murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
Shots Fired Call Brought Officers to Burns Road
Emergency responders were initially dispatched to the Magnolia Lakes Apartments at 717 Burns Road in Carrollton following a shots-fired call, according to FOX 5 Atlanta. WSB-TV reported that the call was received at approximately 8:23 p.m. Sunday. Officers arriving on scene found Smith wounded and provided medical treatment before he was rushed to a hospital, where he later died, according to Atlanta News First. That outlet's report notes the gunfire was preceded by an argument between the suspect and victim, who knew each other, and that authorities said there is no danger to the community.
Police had not released the victim's name as of the initial reporting, with his identity withheld pending notification of next of kin, per the same account. The investigation remains ongoing, and it is unclear whether prior law enforcement calls were made regarding the pair's earlier disputes at the complex.
Murder and Firearm Charges Carry Steep Penalties
Under Georgia Code § 16-5-1, a murder conviction in Georgia — whether prosecuted as malice murder or felony murder — carries mandatory statutory penalties of life imprisonment, life without parole, or the death penalty, according to FindLaw. Durrett also faces a separate charge under Georgia Code § 16-11-106, which makes possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony against another person its own offense, carrying a mandatory five-year prison sentence that must run consecutively to any other sentence, per Justia.
Part of a Pattern of Fatal Disputes in Carrollton
Sunday's shooting adds to a string of fatal altercations investigated by Carrollton police over the past year. In November, Hoodline reported that three suspects were charged with felony murder and aggravated assault after 26-year-old Lareon Brown was fatally shot and two others were injured during an early-morning fight in Carrollton. In July 2025, Hoodline also reported that Carrollton police charged three individuals, including two teenagers, with murder following the roadway shooting death of 46-year-old Tyrone Boykin on Magnolia Street.
Despite that string of cases, 2024 municipal crime data published by OpenCrime shows Carrollton recorded 44 total violent crime incidents — a rate of 156.5 per 100,000 residents — and zero reported homicides that year, representing a 44% decline in violent crime from 2023, according to OpenCrime. The Magnolia Lakes complex is the site of Sunday's shooting.
The investigation into Smith's death continues, and it remains unresolved when Durrett will make his initial appearance in Carroll County Superior Court.
