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DEKALB COUNTY, GA- DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announced a conviction by jury trial in the case of a Lithonia man accused of shooting and killing the mother of his child in a wooded area behind a daycare center in unincorporated Decatur.
Jurors found Taco Nash, Jr., 25, of Lithonia guilty of Malice Murder in connection with the fatal shooting of Mi’ckeya Montgomery, 22, Nash also was found guilty of four counts of Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault – Family Violence, two counts of Kidnapping, Aggravated Stalking, Cruelty to Children in the First Degree, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon or First Offender Probationer, and Possession of a Firearm After Having Been Convicted of Certain Felonies on July 3.
According to the investigation, officers with the DeKalb County Police Department responded to a kidnapping call on the afternoon of June 15, 2022 at a daycare center in the 5300 block of Snapfinger Park Drive in unincorporated Decatur. Montgomery was at the daycare center to pick up the young child she shared with Nash, when he showed up unexpectedly.
Nash had called Montgomery repeatedly that day looking for her and requesting that she meet him to return some of his personal belongings. The two had a tumultuous relationship that included previous violent incidents. They had been ordered by the court not to contact each other, and Montgomery had alerted daycare staff to call 911 if Nash showed up at the center. When he couldn’t get in touch with her on the afternoon of June 15, t Nash confronted Montgomery and their child outside of the daycare.
Nash tried to convince Montgomery to leave with him. Instead, an employee at the daycare pulled Montgomery and the child back into the building and called 911. Nash forced his way in and chased the two around the building while several children and staff were present. He pointed a gun at Montgomery, threatened to shoot her in the face, then forced her and the child out the back door, over a fence and into a wooded area.
Daycare staff could hear screaming coming from the wooded area and called 911 again for help. A member of Montgomery’s family who had been tracking her phone arrived and tried to find her. Police arrived and the family member informed them that Montgomery’s phone was in the wooded area behind the daycare. As officers approached the area, they heard a single gunshot.
After several minutes, Nash emerged from the wooded area with the child in his arms, claiming that Montgomery had shot herself. The child was covered in blood and was transported for medical attention. Nash was taken into custody.
Police found Montgomery deceased in the woods with a single gunshot to the head that entered through her upper lip. A firearm was found under her hand, however the DeKalb County Medical Examiner’s Office determined her manner of death to be a homicide based on the location of the gunshot wound. It is believed that Montgomery was holding the child, who was not injured, when she was shot.
A member of Montgomery’s family shared with officers that Nash called her before emerging from the wooded area and told her he was sorry for killing Montgomery.
Immediately following the verdict, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Brian Lake, who presided over the trial, sentenced Nash to Life Without the Possibility of Parole, followed by two additional life sentences and 60 years to serve.
The case, assigned to the Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Unit was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Garrett Emmons, with assistance from Senior Assistant District Attorney Ashley Johnson, District Attorney Investigator Jerad Wheeler, and Victim Advocate Ashley King. DeKalb County Police Department Detective C. Fowler led the initial investigation.