SUPERIOR COURT
Jones County’s Grand Jury met last week and returned true bill indictments in all 10 cases presented, in addition to performing annual inspections of county facilities.
The cases brought before the jury included six drug cases with several possession charges, and Bobby Paul Duckworth and Michael Terreio Willis were charged with drug trafficking in separate cases.
Duckworth was arrested Jan. 6 and charged with trafficking methamphetamine. Willis was arrested Dec. 27 and faces the charge trafficking cocaine. A News story of Willis’ arrest categorized his vehicle at the time of his arrest as a rolling dispensary of illegal drugs.
Joshua Ballard and Aaron Goolsby were indicted on charges of aggravated assault and kidnapping. The two men allegedly committed aggravated assault by pointing a pistol at the victim and kidnapping when the victim was held against his will.
Rashad Anthony Lay was indicted on charges of malice murder, felony murder and aggravated assault in the shooting death of Trentarius Jade Green. Lay was arrested Oct. 18 following Greene’s Oct. 4 shooting and charged with possession of a firearm or knife during the commission of or attempt to commit certain felonies.
The charge was escalated to murder with Greene’s Nov. 4 death.
The Grand Jury presentments submitted Feb. 9 stated that jury members met Feb. 6 to consider the bills of indictment. The document also stated that jury members inspected and toured the Jones County Law Enforcement Center and found the facility clean and inmates properly supervised. The jury inspected the county treasury through a report by Jones County Administrator Jason Rizner and Chief Finance Officer LaVita Crutchfield and the Jones County District Attorney’s Office through the report of Ocmulgee Circuit District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale III.
The Clerk of the Courts Office and the Probate Court were also inspected by jury members and were found to be in order and well run.
A complete list of the Feb. 6 indictments can be found on the Open Records page of this week’s edition.
