Johnny “JJ” Montgomery and two other men were invited to a social gathering at the mobile home of Nicole Carroll, a white female whose stepfather Michael James Gobert (the killer of Montgomery) lived in a home next door with her (Carroll’s) mother.

According to varying reports, an argument ensued late Monday evening, which stemmed from a disagreement between Carroll and one of the other two Black men who accompanied Montgomery on the visit to the “party”.

After hearing their daughter’s screams, Gobert and his wife both came outside with guns, with Carroll’s mother firing warning shots into the ground, and Gobert shooting 14 shots into the vehicle driven by Montgomery as he and the two other men attempted to escape the barrage of bullets fired.

As a result of the shooting, JJ Montgomery was hit in the head, killing him . Edrius Jamel Putman–the man involved with the dispute with Nicole Carroll–suffered mild damage, with a keychain preventing him from being severely injured. The third man, Deisman Harrison, was not hurt.

Gobert has been charged with murder and is currently in a Walker County jail.

Montgomery was well-known throughout Northwest Georgia and the Chattanooga, TN areas as he was not only a native there (Ringgold, GA), but he was also an aspiring singer and musician who frequented many of the local venues to perform under the stage name “J-Mont“.

In an interview with Chattanooga NBC affiliate WRCBtv, Montgomery’s mother says she spoke with Nicole Carroll, who even admitted to Montgomery’s innocence in the incident, even going further to mention that he (Montgomery) had attempted to diffuse the disagreement between she and Harrison. This would explain the late Montgomery’s reasoning for also attempting to flee the property.

JJ’s mother, Ruth, discussed the emotional, legal, and financial aspects of this entire ordeal. A Go Fund Me page has been created to assist Mr. Montgomery’s family with the burial costs and the support of his four children that he left behind.

B. Clark