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9:17 p.m. • 6-18-13

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Published: 2007-09-30 16:39:00
Updated: 2007-09-30 23:09:06

Congregation Mourns Slain Durham Deacon


Charles Davis, Durham homicide victim
Charles Davis, Durham homicide victim
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Investigators in Durham are still looking for those responsible for killing an 89-year-old Bragtown man.

Family members of Charles Forest Davis found him dead Wednesday night on the floor of his 2913 Nellowood St. home.

Sheriff investigators said the church deacon had been stabbed.

The congregation at Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church remembered the beloved deacon Sunday morning. He had been a member there for more than 50 years.

“People were calling me, crying and they just couldn't handle it. Just couldn't get over it, to be that age, to leave like that,” Rev. James Freeman said.

“He didn't deserve to die like this. No one deserves to die like this,” church member Robert Wiggins said.

Davis lived less than a mile from the Dearborn Drive church. Family members said it appeared Davis was killed during a robbery.

Investigators continue to pursue leads and said they feel good about the prospects for making an arrest soon.

“We have to pray for those peoples. They know not, they can't know, what they've done. 'Cause their life is ruined. They've took a life from us, so they can't know what they did,” Church Deacon Patsy McNair said. “He's resting right now, no pain, no sadness. He's just with God."

Funeral services for Davis were planned for noon Thursday at Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church. There will also be a public viewing from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday at Fisher Funeral Parlor.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Durham County Sheriff's Office at 919-560-0900.

  • Reporter: Erin Coleman
  • Photographer: Anthony Shepherd
  • Web Editor: Minnie Bridgers

17 Comments


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wveagleson= Of all people to dare tell others keep negative comments to themselves. Oh I guess unless it is your town right?

wveagleson,

I agree that this discussion of Durham has no place here but your are your self engaging in it by providing misleading facts. Hear are some real crime statistics for North Carolina:

Murders per 100,000 population

Fayetteville 16

Durham 15.5

Winston Salem 7.8

Raleigh 6.7

High Point 5.6

Source: Morgan Quitno Press using data from F.B.I. "Crime in the United States

what a shame to be blessed to live to 89 years of age, then to die at the hands of a couple of punks. my prayers are with the family, and I hope these thugs are caught and brought to justice.

This is a story about Deacon Davis and his life and death and not about Durham shootings. Raleigh has more shootings than Durham and Chapel Hill and the surrounding towns don't do bad either. If you are not part of the solution to the problem then you need to keep the negative comments about Durham to yourself.

It is always sad to read about someone being murdered in the news. It is a sad, sad day when our children and our elderly are not safe in their own homes. I hope they find the responsible parties and charge them accordingly.

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