A late-night argument in a College Park parking lot on August 5, 2024, ended with 38-year-old Devon Anderson shot and killed outside Harold’s Chicken and Ice Bar on Old National Highway. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says off-duty Atlanta Police Department officer Melvin Potter, then 30, was escorting someone to a vehicle when an argument broke out with a group that included Anderson. Witnesses reported Anderson was trying to de-escalate when Potter drew his service weapon and fired, hitting Anderson three times. Anderson died at a local hospital; his body was sent to the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office.

South Fulton Police arrested Potter that night on an obstruction charge for refusing a breathalyzer; he was booked and released on bond. The GBI took over the shooting investigation and later submitted its findings to the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office for review. Potter’s prior record — a 2021 Coweta County arrest and an April 2022 DUI conviction, and probation at the time of the shooting — has been raised by Anderson’s family. Potter was placed on paid leave and reassigned to non-enforcement duties. No murder charge had been filed against Potter as of early 2026.

Are there witnesses or nearby businesses that saw the confrontation that could shed more light on what happened?