Fear actor sentenced for brutally mutilating best friend

ROME, Ga. (Court TV) The gruesome details of Aaron Davis' murder were revealed during the sentencing hearing for a 23-year-old actor who admitted to brutally killing his best friend.

On June 20, Brandon Christopher Risner pleaded guilty to 12 counts, including malice murder, two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, concealing the death of another, abandoning a corpse and theft by taking, as well as misdemeanor counts of removing body parts from the scene of a death, tampering with evidence and obstructing an officer.

Brandon Risner during his sentencing hearing at the Floyd County Courthouse on July 18, 2024. (Court TV)

It is because of these crimes that Risner will spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole.

At his sentencing on July 18, Floyd County Assistant District Attorney Leah Mayo detailed what she called the calculated murder that Risner confessed to committing on Nov. 11, 2022.

MURDER AND MUTILATION

Davis had stopped at his longtime friend Risner’s house on his way to Alabama to visit his girlfriend. That night, Davis and Risner went to an outdoor beer garden on the Etowah River, had a few beers and returned to Risner’s house, where they sang karaoke, drank wine and went to bed around midnight. Later that night, prosecutors say Risner grabbed a sharp knife from the kitchen and snuck out the window of the guest house, where he deliberately carried out his plan to kill Davis.

Investigators believe Risner killed Davis in the guest bed where he was sleeping, then dragged him into the shower in the guest bathroom, where Risner dismembered him. He then used duct tape he had purchased at a local Walmart to wrap Davis’ body, stuffed it in a suitcase and put his body in the trunk of the victim’s car. The next night, prosecutors said, he buried his best friend in a shallow grave nearby before abandoning Davis’ car behind the levee at Heritage Creek Park.

In an attempt to cover up the horror, prosecutors said Risner bought duct tape and used cleaning products to hide blood stains on the walls, carpet, shower and bed where investigators believe Davis was killed. Risner’s phone revealed a string of Google searches, including searches for new sheets and blankets, muriatic acid, how to empty a washing machine, how to clean blood from a carpet and, in between, watching videos of “No Country for Old Men.”

The prosecutor cited other deceptive behavior, such as impersonating Davis and using his friend's phone to text Davis' girlfriend, who was concerned about her boyfriend's lack of communication. He also texted Davis' family and friends saying he planned to join the search for the friend he had already killed.

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VICTIM STATEMENTS

Davis' family delivered heartbreaking statements, one by one, describing a kind, funny young man with a passion for television and movies who had a big, bright future ahead of him until it was cruelly snatched away by someone the family knew and trusted.

Risner's family also spoke at their son's sentencing, pleading with the judge for leniency. His mother and father both acknowledged their son's mental health issues, but asked that he spend time in a facility that could help him get better and allow him to one day return to the family that loves him.

ARGUMENTS

The defense defended Risner, saying that even if he did not meet the criteria for insanity, his Autism spectrum disorder, unspecified psychotic disorder, cannabis use disorder and other illnesses likely contributed to Davis' untimely death. Having committed no prior offenses and having taken full responsibility for his actions, the defense argued its final request for 30 years in prison with the possibility of parole.

The assistant district attorney said Risner gave different accounts of why he killed Davis, but all suggested it was premeditated, “something he (Risner) had been thinking about since early fall.”

“He had consumed some food and had witnessed a prophecy in which he believed God was telling him that he should either kill his best friend or have sex with his mother-in-law. So he thought he would have less personal pleasure, so he decided to kill Aaron.”

The day Davis called Risner while passing through Rome, Georgia, Risner thought it was a “sign of destiny” since his parents were out of town and he would be alone with Davis.

Ultimately, the prosecutor said, her dark fantasies became reality when she read the defendant's own words, which he used to describe his thoughts before and during the murder.

“I don’t remember a single thought. I knew what I had to do. I was a man with a plan. I went up to the roof and stalked my prey. I became a carnal animal like in a dream. I saw that he was lying in bed. I hid behind the pillar for a second to make sure he didn’t see it… The only emotion I felt was surprise that I could have done it or that I could have changed my reality so drastically with a single action,” the prosecutor said as he recounted the thoughts he had before and during Davis’ murder,” the assistant prosecutor said.

SENTENCE

Judge Jean Niedrachwho responded with respect and empathy to the victims' statements while appreciating the pain of the defendant's family, sided with the victim, stating: “You are all feeling immense pain, but the Davis family rises above that…to have a young son brutally murdered is incomprehensible.”

After reviewing all the facts and circumstances of the charge, Judge Niedrach sentenced Brandon Christopher Risner to life imprisonment without parole.