Asheville police charge second man in fatal neighborhood shooting near River Arts District

Joel Burgess, Asheville Citizen Times
·2 min read

ASHEVILLE - More than four months after a fatal neighborhood shooting near the River Arts District, police have charged another man.

Asheville Police Department detectives say that Jamel Marquis Fisher, 26, played a role in the Jan. 18 slaying of Mackenzie McCord Strickland, 27, on Southern Street in the Southside neighborhood between downtown and the River Arts District.

Fisher's arrest came "as part of an ongoing investigation," according to a May 2 release from an APD spokesperson.

Asheville police have charged another man in a neighborhood shooting south of downtown that happened in January.
Asheville police have charged another man in a neighborhood shooting south of downtown that happened in January.

Fisher was charged with felony accessory after the fact. Officers say they located him at 2:38 p.m. May 1 in West Asheville and that he had a 9 mm Walther CCP pistol. He was also charged with carrying a concealed gun.

The night of the January shooting, police responded to reports of a gunshot wound at Southern Street where they found Strickland shot several times. He died despite the arrival of Buncombe County EMS, according to police reports. The next day day, officers arrested Cody Lee Guyton, 31, charging him with first-degree murder.

Guyton and Strickland were friends, according to Strickland's girlfriend and his mother, who told the Citizen Times that the two argued over a $100 tattoo. Strickland was working to turn his life around after past arrests, his mother said.

Guyton had recently been released from prison before Strickland's shooting, serving time for  for breaking and entering, larceny and habitual felon offenses. His next scheduled appearance on the murder charge is May 30 in Buncombe County Superior Court.

Police say the case remains an active investigation and are asking if anyone has information about the case to contact them. That can be done through anonymous text: TIP2APD to 847411 or by using the TIP2APD smartphone application (search "Asheville PD" in the app store). APD can also be called directly at 828-252-1110.

Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at jburgess@citizentimes.com, 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times. 

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville police: Another charged in January Southern Street shooting