Former police officer Gregory Livingston shot and killed Alvin Motley in Memphis, Tennessee, on August 7, according to WREG Memphis. Motely was purchasing gasoline at the Kroger Fuel Center on Poplar and Kirby around 7 p.m. when Livingston confronted him over his music being too loud.
A witness in Motley’s car said that the two men argued over the volume of Motley’s stereo before Motley got into his car. The witness said that the ex-cop got back out of the car and told Livingston they should talk like men. Livingston, who was working as an armed security guard for Allied Universal Security, shot Motley in the chest with a 9mm Glock 19.
Livingston, 54, was arrested by Memphis police and charged with second-degree murder. The former Horn Lake police officer is being held on a $1.8 million bond at the Shelby County Jail.
One witness told the news outlet that she could still hear the gunfire.
“I’m still shaky thinking about it, you know. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the sound,” she said. “We have all been in arguments, and you don’t just raise your gun up and shoot anyone because someone said something out of the way to you. It was just uncalled for.”
Officers are on the scene of a shooting at 6660 Poplar Ave: Kroger Fuel Center. One male has been pronounced deceased on the scene. This investigation is ongoing at this point.
— Memphis Police Dept (@MEM_PoliceDept) August 8, 2021
Preliminary information reveals a disagreement between the victim and the suspect occurred prior to the shooting. The suspect, who has been detained, is reportedly a security guard. Investigators are sorting through the details and have several witnesses to interview.
— Memphis Police Dept (@MEM_PoliceDept) August 8, 2021
54-year-old Gregory Livingston was charged with Second Degree Murder. pic.twitter.com/R5KS4DuXGi
— Memphis Police Dept (@MEM_PoliceDept) August 8, 2021
This is Alvin Motley. Family shared this photo with me saying he was a local celebrity in his Chicago community, an aspiring actor and entertainer who loved his family.
They say he was in Memphis Saturday for a business trip and to see/surprise loved ones. @3onyourside pic.twitter.com/N8lIxWOX8b
— Symone Woolridge (@SymoneTV) August 9, 2021
Motley’s family feels that the charge should be first-degree murder and has retained Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump as their attorney. Crump issued a statement following Motley’s murder.
“My heart breaks for the Motley family as they grieve the tragic and preventable loss of Alvin,” wrote Crump. “Kroger and companies that employ security have the ultimate responsibility to train and equip their employees and contractors on de-escalation techniques, similar to the training we’ve been advocating for law enforcement officers. There is no reason that a Black man trying to gas up his car should lose his life because his music was louder than what a security guard prefers. There is no question in my mind that this crime was racially motivated and a white person playing loud music in similar circumstances would be alive.”
Motley’s fiancé, Rolanda Johnson, is devastated. She said that Livingston took away her future and the love of her life.
“This man took the love of my life away from me. You didn’t give me no chance to have a future with my husband that I was about to marry in two months,” Johnson said.
