SUPERIOR COURT
Motions presented in Jones County Superior Court pertaining to defendants charged in a 2021 case felony murder were continued to allow attorneys to submit briefs, but the question of bond was not that complicated.
Superior Court Senior Judge Donald Gillis, who is the former Chief Judge of the Dublin Judicial Circuit, presided over the June 9 proceedings. The out-of-circuit judge was necessary because all five of the superior court judges in the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit have recused themselves from the case.
Jeremy Xavier Butts was arrested May 27, 2021, and charged with murder in the death of 20-year-old Jada Franese Simmons. The shooting took place at a party on Nitrogen Road in Jones County.
His sister, Cierra Simone Butts, was arrested May 19, 2021, and charged with hindering the apprehension or punishment of a criminal for her role in her brother’s flight to El Paso that took place the same night as the shooting. A Jones County Grand Jury indicted the siblings Aug. 2, 2021. Jeremy Butts was indicted for the charges of felony murder and seven counts of aggravated assault. Cierra Butts was indicted for the charge of hindering the apprehension of a criminal.
Jeremy Butts was represented June 9 by defense attorneys Bruce Harvey and Stephen Katz. Cierra Butts was represented by Atlanta defense attorney Kimberly Cornwell. The case was prosecuted by Ocmulgee Circuit District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale and Assistant District Attorney Cara Fiore.
The day began with the arguments in two motions, the first to suppress anything from the search of Jeremy Butts’ car that was seized by the Jones County Sheriff’s Office. Barksdale said at this time he did not think the state would be using anything from the car.
Gillis ordered the prosecutor to bring the matter back in front of him if that changed.
The next defense motion was to suppress anything found in the search of his phone.
Harvey took exception to the warrants and that the phone was seized by law enforcement in El Paso.
The attorney argued that there were no time limitations for what could be searched but mostly objected to the warrant being too general.
Fiore stated that the law was clear. She said what was in the warrant was common sense, and those attending the party pointed to Jeremy Butts as the shooter.
“People have their phones in their hands every day. The GPS data puts him at the location of the murder,” she said.
Copies of the warrants for the phone were entered into evidence as defense exhibits one and two. Fiore said the state took a common sense approach to the warrants.
“We know he fled to Texas, and he had his phone on his person,” she said.
At the conclusion of Harvey’s lengthy objections to the warrants being too general, attorneys agreed to submit briefs to the judge. Harvey was given 30 days to submit the arguments for his motions, and the state will then have 10 days to reply to the arguments.
Cornwell had filed a demur motion for her client but opted to wait to present her arguments at another time.
Bond
The final motion of the proceeding was the defense motion for reconsideration of bond for Jeremy Butts. The defendant was denied bond at a hearing that followed a June 10, 2021, preliminary hearing.
Harvey pointed out that his client had been incarcerated since his May 18, 2021, arrest. He said Butts is 28, is from Milledgeville and was employed by his father’s business. The attorney said if released on bond, Butts would live with his parents.
Harvey said his client served in the Army and has no criminal history. He admitted some consideration went to the pandemic for the amount of time Butts has been in custody.
“At some point, due process kicks in. Delay violates his rights, and we ask for a reasonable bond,” Harvey said.
Barksdale spoke for the state. He told the court that the case involved loss of life and evidence shows the defendant fled to Texas immediately after the shooting.
“We had to go to Texas to get him, and his sister faces charges that she helped. That caused the state to lose out on some of the evidence,” he said.
Harvey objected to the arguments of the case at the bond hearing.
Gillis noted that the hearing was a reconsideration of bond and asked the defense what had changed.
Harvey said time had passed, and no one knew when the case would be tried.
The interesting point about that argument is that it is Harvey’s schedule that is holding up the trial. The state has announced it’s ready, but Harvey told the court he is tied up in a big RICO trial in Atlanta that is expected to continue until the end of the year.
Gillis asked if there was any possibility that the judge in the RICO trial would break for the Butts trial, and Harvey said he would not.
Gillis then stated that he recalled the testimony at Butts’ bond hearing.
“I could not find that he is not a risk to flee,” he said. “I don’t find any change in that circumstance, and bond is denied.”
Barksdale asked for the trial to be specially set in the spring. Harvey responded that they were still selecting a jury in the Atlanta case and could not commit to the trial being over.
