Court Will Not Hear Jones’ Appeal

The State Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal of a Putnam County man found guilty of second degree murder.

In a 2018 trial, a jury found Willie Nathan Jones guilty in the death of Rodney Richards and the attempted murder of Stacy Maynard. Jones was sentenced to 37 years imprisonment on the murder charge and the attempted murder charge.

Jones appealed his sentence to the Appeals Court on seven grounds.

“On appeal, Defendant contends that: (1) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions; (2) the trial court erred by repeatedly referring to Mr. Richards and Ms. Maynard as “victims” throughout trial; (3) the trial court violated Defendant’s due process rights by preventing him from properly impeaching a State’s witness using the sheriff department’s “Use of Force” and “Critical Incident” guidelines; (4) the State violated Defendant’s right to a fair trial by “continuously commenting on the evidence and credibility during closing arguments”; (5) the trial court erred by failing to suppress Defendant’s statements to police because he was questioned while tired and under the influence and because Defendant’s request for counsel was not honored; (6) the trial court abused its discretion in ordering consecutive sentencing; and (7) cumulative error necessitates a new trial.”