Tuesday marks the four-year anniversary of the death of Bibb County Sheriff's Deputy Joseph Whitehead.
36-year old Bibb Co. Deputy Joseph Whitehead was fatally shot while serving a no-knock warrant on Atherton Street shortly after 1:30 a.m. on March 23, 2006.
Tuesday marks the four-year anniversary of the death of Bibb County Sheriff's Deputy Joseph Whitehead.
36-year old Whitehead was fatally shot while serving a no-knock warrant on Atherton Street shortly after 1:30 a.m. on March 23, 2006.
On March 10, the Supreme Court docketed an Interim Review, which allows the attorneys to appeal pre-trial issues at the Supreme Court, said State Supreme Court spokeswoman Jane Hansen.
Attorneys for Antron Dewayne Fair and Damon Antwon Jolly, both accused of shooting Whitehead and facing the death penalty, will likely orally argue some pre-trial issues at the Ga. Supreme Court in June, said Hansen.
Court documents say they could include whether Jolly and Fair can be charged with shooting a police officer if they did not know he was one; an alleged conflict of interest because the Ga. Capital Defender's Office represented both defendants; and whether it was legal to hold hearings without Fair present, if he did not sign a waiver.
The Georgia Supreme Court is expected to rule on those issues before the end of the year, said Hansen.
Bibb County Assistant District Attorney Kim Schwartz says they plan to handle Jolly and Fair's cases before going forward on the other two suspects, Thomas Porter and Hassan Shirell Harclerode's, who each face murder charges for their involvement in Whitehead's death.
Schwartz says the U.S Attorney's Office took over Porter's and Harclerode's cases after Whitehead's death, because they already had an active case on the two for drug conspiracy charges.
"They each pled guilty in Federal Court," said Schwartz.
She says Porter has a pending drug sentence and Hassan Shirell Harclerode is currently serving time for drug conspiracy charges.
Fair and Jolly also face charges of drug and firearm possession.
Whitehead served 11 years with the Bibb County Sheriff's Department.
He left behind a wife and three children.
Jolly's attorney Jeffrey Grube could not be reached, Fair's attorney Brian Steele would not comment on the case.