Who killed Josh Davis? After 22 years, Garner police still chasing a killer

Even in the early days, the case of who killed Josh Davis had all the elements of a murder mystery: no weapon, no signs of struggle, no explanation for a 16-year-old boy lying dead on a Garner street.

The scene offered few clues: Davis and his cousin were walking three familiar blocks between his mom’s house on Hall Boulevard and his dad’s on Tiffany Circle, on their way to play basketball not long after dark, when the cousin remembered a compact disc he’d left behind and ran back to fetch it.

When the cousin returned only a few minutes later, he found Davis on the ground in a bed of pine needles — dead from a single, massive blow to the head.

That was 2004, and since then, little else is certain.

Legend in his own mind

But after two decades, Garner police are giving the case a new look, citing details that need a fresh set of eyes, noting the deep wounds still aching from a teen’s senseless end.

When Davis died, police hadn’t investigated a homicide in Garner for almost three years. The case turned immediately frustrating when a 14-year-old friend said he had a phone message from Davis with sounds of struggling, footsteps and then moaning.

But he accidentally erased it.

At first, it wasn’t even certain Davis had been murdered.

The cousin banged on a neighbor’s door shortly after finding the body, screaming that Davis had been hit by a car. But police found no debris at the scene or any other signs of a collision, and Davis’ only wound appeared just above his right ear — an odd location for a passing vehicle on a slow, residential street.

Then for a while, the investigation turned to Davis’ romantic life.

A self-described ladies’ man, Davis had so many girlfriends at Garner High that he called himself “Lil’ Pimp,” a nickname that stuck. A makeshift memorial on Hall Boulevard had one tribute signed by “Hot Mama” and another inscribed, “Remember, you’ll always be my husband.”

“A legend in his own mind,” joked one relative.

But when police probed suspects from the boyfriend-girlfriend angle, they found alibis from all they questioned. Rumors circulated that a rival had driven by and hit him with a bat, but Davis’ family told The N&O at the time that the person in question had hired a lawyer and not spoken to police.

False leads

Two months after Davis died, police released a composite sketch of a man seen “tripping over himself” near the scene. It showed a broad-shouldered man with an athletic build wearing a white hooded sweatshirt, but it produced no arrests. The case got further mired in false reports flooding in.

Police arrested a fellow Garner High student for obstruction of justice after he falsely told officers he had been present on the scene and could name the person responsible. It turned out, police said at the time, that the tipster had no connection to Davis at all.

Finally, in 2007, Garner police declared the case a hit-and-run accident after it hired a private detective firm to recreate the scene and examine wounds and blood spatter. Police turned their hopes to a driver from that night who might remember something.

No one ever did.

And two decades later, police describe the case as an unsolved homicide, and they seek anything — no detail too small.

“We found a few things that merited follow up and additional review,” said Det. M.N. Hammerstein in an email to The N&O. “Josh’s killing affected a lot of people and still does 22 years later. We reached out to the public because there are people who know what happened, and we want to hear from anyone who may know anything.”

This was a kid who had just turned 16 — frozen in a single moment in the dark, denied the chance to graduate, go to college, maybe marry one of those girlfriends.

He would be almost 40 now.

Anyone with information about this case can contact Garner Police at (919) 772-8810 or email Det. Hammerstein at mhammerstein@garnernc.gov. Anonymous tips can be submitted to www.garnernc.gov/departments/police/i-want-to/report-a-crime-or-suspicious-activity.

This story was originally published January 12, 2026 at 5:00 AM.

Josh Shaffer

The News & Observer

919-829-4818

Josh Shaffer is a general assignment reporter on the watch for “talkers,” which are stories you might discuss around a water cooler. He has worked for The News & Observer since 2004 and writes a column about unusual people and places.