A man shot as part of a violent rampage in downtown Memphis last summer has died.
This afternoon friends confirmed Josh Walton passed away after more than a year long battle.
Police say within minutes, on a June 2016 night, Justin Welch shot two people at Westys restaurant, shot a worker outside the bass pro pyramid, and hit and killed Memphis Police Officer Verdell Smith with a car just off Beale Street.
News of Walton’s death hit staff especially hard at Westy’s.
“He’s been suffering. He’s been in and out of hospice. He’s been in hospice for a while, but now, of course, he’s at peace, and I think about it a lot because of the suffering he’s been through, and just lasted way too long,” says Westy’s Owner Jake Schorr.
A friend of Josh Walton told local 24 news the 40-year-old father died Friday at Methodist North Hospital.
We are waiting for hear back from Memphis police on the impact Walton’s death will have on Justin Welch’s existing charged.
