Donald "DJ" Edward Fickey, Jr

[YaYa_521]

‘He would never kill himself’: Sister fights to give dead brother justice as sheriff changes cause of death from suicide to possible homicide

• February 3, 2018

A Georgia woman says her brother was murdered and that police botched the investigation from the get-go

Physical evidence at the scene and some witness statements were consistent with a suicide, WDEF-TV reports

But Fickey’s sister, A. S., disputes that notion

...evidence to back her up

Snip

claims police did not secure the crime scene and failed to properly and thoroughly investigate her brother’s death

Snip

Georgia Bureau of Investigation still stands by its determination that Fickey committed suicide, the Walker County Sheriff’s Office has changed the cause of death to a possible homicide

 

[YaYa_521]

Suicide investigation questioned by Walker Co. family
Monday, February 5th 2018, 5:42 PM EST Updated: Monday, February 5th 2018, 6:10 PM EST

• found dead with a shotgun wound to his face
• DJ Fickey was with at least two other people at the time of his death, his wife and a family friend who called 911
• 911 call
• hear the caller report moving the gun

Caller: " I got the gun up and checked to see what it was and it was a 12 gauge."
Dispatcher: " Okay, so you moved the gun is that correct?"
Caller: " Yes".
Dispatcher: " Okay can you secure that gun, can you get it unloaded safely and get it to the side out of the way?"
Caller: "Yes."

"The officer went inside, got the gun and put it out on the table so that's tampering with evidence," said Shirley.

• caller
  changed his story multiple times - 1) in another room at the time of the shooting & 2) told detectives he was wrestling Fickey for the gun when it fired
  failed a polygraph test

• DJ's wife told a different story.

"She seen the person of interest come out of the bedroom, angrily point the gun at my brother, called him a name and shot him," Shirley said.

 

[YaYa_521]

Private investigator: 'There's enough proof for arrest in case ruled suicide'

"We have hired a lot of experts on DJ's case. We've gotten a lot of professional opinions. A lot of open records requests," Shirley said.

Snip

"There is a killer out among the community that could do this again to someone else.

Snip

...hired private investigator Eric Echols

Snip

"The gunshot residue on DJ, they didn't do that. They talked to all of the "witnesses" together, they didn't separate them. They didn't take them to the police department and interview them properly. Those types of things, they didn't take enough crime scene photos," he said.

Snip

"There's enough information to secure an indictment. There's enough evidence to secure an indictment. Not to reopen the case, to get a conviction, there's enough," he added.

Snip

Georgia Bureau of Investigation:
"Following the death of Mr. Donald Fickey, a GBI Medical Examiner conducted an examination of Mr. Fickey's injury. Based on the results of this examination, which includes a physical examination and information obtained from the Walker County Sheriff's Office investigation, the manner of death was ruled a suicide. Subsequently, the Medical Examiner's Office reviewed additional information connected to this case and performed further forensic testing. Based on the review, the results of the manner of death remain unchanged as the new information provided did not support a new finding."

 

[YaYa_521]

Woman continues to fight for answers in brother's death - WDEF
February 24, 2020
“It being an election year, I believe it would be good to talk about it and get back out into the public because as long as you have these officials running these counties for twenty plus years, until they are voted out and someone new is put in their position you are going to continue having these kinds of cases,” SHirley said.

Private investigator Eric Echols says the case wasn’t handled properly.

“You didn’t do gunshot residue on DJ’s hand. You didn’t fingerprint him and fingerprint the firearm. You talked to all of the witnesses together. You didn’t separate them. You didn’t take them down to the police station and interview them properly. There are things like that that didn’t happen,” Echols said.

Snip

“In order of us to be able to move on I am not going to stop until the person who took my brother’s life is in jail where he belongs,” Shirley said.

 

[YaYa_521]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...s-and-americas-thirst-for-true-crime-stories/
JULY 30, 2019
Snipped

Later on Friday afternoon, I met Amanda Shirley.

Snip

In 2016, DJ Fickey, Shirley’s brother, died of a gunshot wound, and a medical examiner in Walker County, Ga., ruled his death a suicide. Shirley is sure that her brother did not kill himself but was killed. She has launched an impassioned campaign to persuade the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to reopen her brother’s case. But it’s been an uphill battle to attract media attention — in part, Shirley believes, because her brother was not a woman. “A woman’s body was found in this same county two weeks ago and people can’t stop talking about it,” she told me later. “They have talked more about her in the last two weeks than they have my brother in the last three years.”

Snip

She still worried, though, about DJ’s case not providing a strong enough plotline to reach people and eventually bring about justice. Recently she filed a wrongful-death suit, hoping to use the court system to do what law enforcement wouldn’t: hold an alleged perpetrator responsible.

 

[YaYa_521]

Justice For DJ
#JusticeForDJ

 

[Tricia]

Tonight Dr. Laura Pettler and Leigh Egan from crimeonline.com will be discussing DJ's case and more on Websleuths YouTube Live.

CLICK HERE A FEW MINUTES PAST 10 PM EASTERN AND JOIN US LIVE

 

[Tricia]

CONGRATULATIONS to
DrLaura Pettler
and her team for winning the "Best Victim Centred Death Investigation". This is the second year in a row the team has won this worldwide prestigious award. Dr. Laura and her team of highly trained professionals were able to get the manner of death changed in the DJ Fickey case. DJ's death was ruled a suicide but thanks to the hours and hours put into the investigation the team from Laura Pettler & Associates the manner of death has been changed to "Undetermined" Please join me in congratulating Dr. Pettler and her team!!!
www.lpateam.com
https://justicefordj.com/updates-blog/

 

[JusticeForDj]

UPDATE: Medical examiner with GBI changes manner of death in Walker County case

 

[CastlesBurning]

Arrest made in cold case death from 2016 - WDEF

WALKER COUNTY, Ga. (WDEF) — There has been an update in a cold case death from Walker County from nearly seven years ago.

In the fall of 2016, Donald (DJ) Fickey was found dead.

According to the family, North Georgia authorities made an arrest in the case this week.

Amanda Shirley, Fickey’s sister, says a man named Marshall Payne was arrested in this case and charged with murder.

News 12 has reached out to law enforcement but has not yet received confirmation or any additional details.

Authorities originally ruled the death a suicide, but the family did not believe Fickey committed suicide. They have been nonstop fighting for justice since his death.

They even hired a private investigator.

In August of 2020, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) changed the manner of death from suicide to “undetermined.”

Shirley tells News 12 that Walker County indicted Payne back in April. Murray County deputies arrested him Tuesday night, she added.