Man, 20, charged in fatal east Raleigh shooting

Officers responding to 2110 Groundwater Place about 7 p.m. found Bryan Keith Gill Jr., 21, dead inside. Alexander Leon Walton, of 4704 Grand Cypress Court, was taken into custody by police at the home and later charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Investigators said Gill and Walton were the only people inside the home at the time of the shooting, but they have not said what prompted it.

According to a 911 call, an unidentified caller told a dispatcher his best friend had been shot by accident and repeatedly asked for help.

Walton, who was in the Wake County jail under a $40,000 secured bond Wednesday afternoon, was also charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon for allegedly having a .25 caliber handgun in his possession.

According to court records, he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in connection with a June 2011 murder in which he and three other people were charged. He served 24 months of supervised probation until May, when his sentence was complete.

Tony Daniels, Gill's stepfather, said the family waited for hours overnight to learn about Gill's condition and believes it was an accident.

"(Walton) hung out at our house a lot. He was Bryan's best friend," he said. "It doesn't make it any easier though. Our son is gone."

Daniels, his wife and three children live at the home, he said, and Gill was often over.

A neighbor described the family as quiet and friendly.

"It breaks my heart," Ryan Curley said. "My wife and I lost a pregnancy, so we know the feeling of losing a child, and I never wish this on anybody. It's a crazy world we live in these days."