On December 3, 2023, at about 6 a.m., officers responding to a ShotSpotter alert in the 600 block of Troy Street, near Durham Technical Community College, found 65-year-old Darryl Keith Harris suffering from a gunshot wound. He was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead. A funeral service was held December 19, 2023, at Russell Memorial CME Church in Durham with visitation at noon and the service at 1:00 p.m.

Police announced an arrest on December 8, 2023: 44-year-old James Edward Lyons was charged with murder and booked into the Durham County Jail without bond; he appeared before a judge December 11, 2023, and was denied bail. The Durham Police Department described the investigation as ongoing and asks anyone with information to contact Investigator J.D. Harris at 919-560-4440 ext. 29120 or CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200.

Harris’s death was one of a series of homicides that pushed Durham toward the city’s recent high in 2023. If anyone knew Darryl Keith Harris or has information about the shooting, please contact the numbers above.