Byron Marquice Walker was a 20-year-old from Springfield, Ohio, who was shot and killed in the early morning of January 10, 2010. He was found with a gunshot wound to the back of the head in the 200 block of Stanton Avenue and was pronounced dead at the scene. Walker, born August 31, 1989, attended North High School and was remembered by family and his girlfriend, Leslie Wellman, as generous, active, and someone who loved sports.

Springfield police investigated the killing and later arrested 19-year-old Francis Tyler Russell in Maryland; he was returned to Springfield and charged with Walker’s murder. Russell pleaded not guilty at arraignment. Walker’s mother, Rhondia Russell (not related to the suspect), spoke publicly about her grief, and the community held a candlelight vigil in his memory.