Dayton \u201cDJ\u201d Webber built a national reputation by tossing beanbags with deadly accuracy despite having no hands or feet, but Maryland authorities now allege he turned a real weapon on a passenger in his own car. The 27-year-old professional cornhole player, who travels the country competing from a custom wheelchair, was arrested Sunday in Virginia on first- and second-degree murder charges after witnesses told police he shot 27-year-old Bradrick Michael Wells during an argument and then dumped the body in a residential yard.<\/p>\n
Webber\u2019s rise began when videos of his high-arcing shots and mid-air celebrations racked up millions of views on TikTok and YouTube. Born with a rare bacterial infection that forced the amputation of all four limbs before age five, he learned to grip a cornhole bag between the end of his arm and his shoulder. Sponsors soon followed, and Webber regularly appeared at American Cornhole League events, often billed as the league\u2019s most recognizable adaptive athlete.<\/p>\n
That feel-good narrative collapsed this week. According to the Charles County Sheriff\u2019s Office, Webber picked up Wells and two other acquaintances late Saturday night. While driving along Route 301 in Indian Head, Maryland, Webber and Wells began arguing. Witnesses seated behind them told detectives the fight escalated until Webber produced a handgun and fired at least one round into Wells\u2019s upper body. The witnesses say Webber then pulled to the shoulder, asked for help moving the body, and\u2014when they refused\u2014sped away with Wells still slumped in the front passenger seat.<\/p>\n
Deputies found Wells\u2019s body shortly after sunrise in a yard off Livingston Road. An autopsy confirmed the cause as a single gunshot wound. Investigators traced Webber to a hospital in Charlottesville, Virginia, where he was taken into custody without incident. He is awaiting extradition to Maryland, where prosecutors intend to seek life without parole.<\/p>\n
Within hours of Webber\u2019s arrest, a 2021 YouTube clip titled \u201cNo Excuses\u201d began circulating on Reddit and Twitter. In the two-minute segment, Webber sits in an open field littered with spent shells. Balancing a 9 mm pistol on his thigh, he uses the residual limb of his right arm to seat a magazine, then clamps the frame between the end of his left arm and the bicep of his right. By pressing the trigger with the rounded edge of his arm, he squeezes off the entire magazine, pausing only to grin at the camera.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors have not indicated whether the video will be introduced at trial, but legal analysts say it undercuts any argument that Webber could not have handled the murder weapon. \u201cJurors will watch a man with no hands fire ten rounds in under fifteen seconds,\u201d said former federal prosecutor Melanie Klaus. \u201cThat makes the defense\u2019s job a lot harder.\u201d<\/p>\n
The ACL moved quickly to distance itself. Less than 24 hours after the arrest, commissioner Stacey Moore released a statement saying Webber\u2019s player credential had been \u201cpermanently revoked\u201d and that the league would \u201ccooperate fully with law-enforcement.\u201d Equipment sponsor GLC Sports announced it had terminated Webber\u2019s endorsement deal, and his name was scrubbed from the upcoming Players Championship bracket in Rock Hill, South Carolina.<\/p>\n
Fellow adaptive athletes expressed shock. \u201cDJ was the face of what we wanted the sport to be\u2014inclusive, inspiring, competitive,\u201d said para-cornhole pro Jenna Castillo. \u201cNow every interview I do this season is going to start with questions about him. It\u2019s heartbreaking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maryland abolished the death penalty in 2013, but a first-degree murder conviction still carries a maximum sentence of life without the possibility of parole. Second-degree murder allows for up to 40 years. Prosecutors typically stack both counts to give jurors an alternative and to strengthen plea-bargain leverage. Webber is also charged with firearm use in a violent crime, which adds a mandatory 5- to 20-year sentence that must be served consecutive to any other penalty.<\/p>\n
Because the alleged killing occurred in a moving vehicle, the state can argue felony murder\u2014meaning the intent to commit a dangerous felony (assault with a firearm) makes any resulting death murder even without pre-meditation. Webber\u2019s public defender, assigned Monday morning, declined media requests for comment.<\/p>\n