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    • Chatham County Superior Court and Grand Jury Updates for November 12, 2024
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    Chatham County Superior Court and Grand Jury Updates for November 12, 2024

    Harry Posted on

    This column is part of a weekly summary of major grand jury indictments and court decisions following cases reported by Savannah Morning News public safety reporter Drew Favakeh. If you have curious cases, email Drew at: [email protected].

    Kenneth Mayes found guilty of manslaughter in fatal stabbing

    A Chatham County Jury found Kenneth Mayes guilty of three counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count of aggravated assault, one count of aggravated battery and two counts of possession of a knife during the commission of a felony in the 2022 fatal stabbing of James Walter Miller. According to a press release from the Chatham County District Attorney.

    On Nov. 1, the jury found Mayes not guilty of possessing a knife during a crime and also pleaded guilty to two counts of felony murder and aggravated assault.

    Mayes was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

    The Savannah Police Department (SPD) arrested Mayes in connection with the fatal stabbing of a 51-year-old man at a residence on W. 36th Street on May 17, 2022. According to a press release from the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office, the incident began with a dispute between Mayes and Miller earlier in the day. The dispute was initially resolved by Mayes leaving the residence. When Mayes returned some time later, he found Miller asleep in his bed. Mayes then attacked Miller with a knife, killing him, according to the press release.

    At approximately 6:15 a.m. on the same date, officers responded to an apartment in the 500 block of W. 36th Street and discovered Miller suffering from serious injuries. SPD press release. The person was taken to the hospital and died as a result of his injuries.

    “District Attorney Shalena Cook Jones commends the Deputy District Attorneys as well as Sgt. We thank Travis Duncan of the Savannah Police Department for his hard work and dedication in securing this conviction and providing justice for the people of Chatham County,” the press release said.

    Mayes had filed a motion to dismiss the case in mid-August 2024, arguing that he was immune from prosecution due to self-defense, but the motion was denied due to Mayes being represented by Chatham County Public Defender Katie Kelly.

    Following last week’s conviction, Kelly filed a motion for a new trial on Nov. 6, claiming the state failed to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and that the verdict was contrary to the evidence presented.

    More details emerge in Tracy Agin drug trafficking case

    The Chatham County prosecutor filed a motion to consolidate the two cases ahead of Tracy Agin’s jury trial on Oct. 30.

    In August 2021, a Chatham County grand jury indicted Tracy Agin on charges of illegal drug trafficking and trafficking in methamphetamine or amphetamine. The indictment alleged that Agin and co-defendant John Waylon Duncan were in possession of more than four grams of a Schedule I controlled substance and 28 grams of methamphetamine, a Schedule II controlled substance.

    Second The indictment against Agin came in July 2023Alleging that he caused the death of a woman named April Raices, who died in June 2021, by providing fentanyl-laced drugs. Agin is charged with felony murder, unlawful use of a communications facility, and World War II with intent to distribute. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance.

    The motion, filed by Chatham County Assistant District Attorney (ADA) Lyle Burnham, also reveals details not previously reported by the news media.

    More: In session: Two men found guilty of murder in trial in August 2022

    According to the motion, in April 2021, Chatham-Savannah Counternarcotics Team (CNT) agents “received intelligence” that Agin was selling heroin, fentanyl, crack cocaine and methamphetamine from a hotel in Chatham County. In May and June 2021, CNT representatives conducted “controlled purchasing operations” from Agin. In two cases, CNT agents purchased suspected fentanyl from Agin, and the drugs later tested positive for fentanyl. During the investigation, CNT received information that Agin was selling drugs to Raices.

    The investigation states that on June 25, 2021, CNT agents executed a search warrant, and on the same date, agents executed the search warrant in a room at the Suburban Extended Stay. Agin was taken into custody, and CNT agents found a substance later confirmed by GBI analysis to be fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine.

    On June 29, 2023, CNT agents conducted an interview with Agin. During the meeting, Agin was presented with a copy of the indictment for Raices’ death.

    “After being presented with a copy of the Indictment for SPCR23-01998-J1, the Defendant responded, ‘it took long enough,’” Burnham alleges in the filing.

    “During the interview, the Defendant continued to explain that he sold drugs to Ms. Raices in the hours before she died,” Burnham added. “The defendant also stated that people would buy from him because he had heroin with ‘the smallest amount’ of fentanyl in it and that ‘Fentanyl is very dangerous.'”

    A jury trial is scheduled for November 12. Agin’s defense attorney, Skye Musson, said in a phone interview that several motions, including combining the two cases, will be heard before the trial begins.

    “We believe that some of the alleged conduct is not fundamentally related, and it would be extremely harmful for a jury to consider both cases simultaneously,” Musson said. “We’re not going there by denying my client’s involvement in the drug trade, we just want to make sure the jury has a clear view of the specific facts surrounding the murder and not let my client’s actions in the drug trade color it.” “As a defendant or as a person.”

    “He never claimed that he was not involved in drug dealing,” Musson added. “Our issue is that we do not believe he was the proximate cause or actual cause of April Raices’ death. However, we understand that this is a tragic situation.”

    Logan Odom pleads guilty to first-degree vehicular homicide, prosecutors drop other charges

    Logan Odom pleaded guilty to first-degree vehicular homicide on Oct. 29 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison, including one year and six months in prison, 180 days in a probation facility, and eight years of supervised release.

    Chatham County ADAs chose not to prosecute first-degree vehicular homicide cases such as driving under the influence (less safe – drugs), driving under the influence (controlled substance), driving without a license, racing on the highway or on the streets. reckless driving.

    More: At the hearing: Parents pleaded not guilty in the death of their 16-month-old daughter

    Odom was indicted on all of the above charges by a Chatham County Grand Jury in late August 2023.

    The indictment accused Odom of killing Justin Anderson on Oct. 16, 2022, while racing his Honda Motorcycle on Pine Meadow Drive without a valid driver’s license. According to the indictment, Odom, who lived in Statesboro, later tested positive for cocaine and marijuana.

    Drew Favakeh is the public safety and courts reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at [email protected].

    Harry
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