SUPERIOR COURT
A defendant in a 2021 Jones County murder case was deemed incompetent following a competency hearing in Superior Court last week, in effect resolving the case with a life sentence of a different type.
Sharon Strawder Wood was arrested Nov. 20, 2021, for the murder of Lamar Brinson Price. Investigators with the Jones County Sheriff’s Office recognized that there were mental health implications at the scene of the murder.
Chief Superior Court Judge Brenda Trammell ruled Jan. 25 that Wood was incompetent to stand trial and determined she was non-restorable. That ruling took place after more than two years of frustration by the court, prosecution, defense and the family of the victim in dealing with the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHD). Barksdale explained that Wood underwent several mental health evaluations while in the custody of the Jones County jail.
“At one point she was transferred to a state hospital for intense treatment, which resulted in a determination by DBHD that Ms. Wood was competent to stand trial. However, Ms. Wood’s mental health would later revert back to a level of incompetency. A later determination was reached by the doctors that Ms. Wood’s condition was non-restorable,” he said.
The prosecutor said the investigation showed Wood unexplainably shot Price in the head with a handgun. He said Wood openly admitted to law enforcement as to what she did.
“At the hearing, all parties agreed with the Department of Behavioral Health that Ms. Wood was incompetent,” he said.
The state was represented by Barksdale, and the defendant was represented by defense attorney Floyd Buford.
“As a result of the ruling, Ms. Wood will be placed in the care and custody of the DBHD for a term no longer than the sentence that could have been imposed if found guilty. In this case, that is life. Every year the DBHD will submit a report to Judge Trammell updating the court on Ms. Wood’s status,” Barksdale explained. “The murder of Mr. Price is yet another sad reminder of the mental health crisis we are currently facing. Our prayers go out to the family of Mr. Price, and our thanks go to the Jones County Sheriff’s Office for the work they put into the investigation of this horrible tragedy.”
The brother of the victim spoke at the conclusion of the hearing, airing his frustration with the entire process.
Barksdale said DBHD’s lack of action and delays caused injustice to the victim’s family but was also unfair to Wood. He said she needed medical care to address her issues that the jail was simply not able to provide.
“No jail is equipped to do so. A jail is not a hospital. This entire tragic story is unfortunately not the exception, but rather the norm,” he added.
The lead investigator in the murder case was JCSO Investigator Lt. Kenny Gleaton.
Price, 59, was found dead at the scene, Nov. 20, 2021, from a single gunshot to the head, according to Gleaton in an interview following the shooting.
The investigator said Wood, 73, the suspect in the shooting, was also found at the scene, which took place at her residence. Gleaton said Wood and Price had been in a relationship for 20 years, and there had been no prior reports of domestic violence.
He said Price had a separate residence on Highway 49.
The investigator said JCSO received a non-emergency call at 8 a.m. Nov. 20, 2021, from the suspect’s mother. He said the caller said her daughter had just told her in a phone call that she had shot her boyfriend and asked the sheriff’s department to check it out.
Gleaton said JCSO Sgt. David Little and Deputy Patrick Bloodworth made contact at the residence and found Price deceased inside. He said Wood’s initial statements led them to take her into custody.
The investigator said the scene was locked down and a warrant received to search the house. He said the body was turned over to the coroner, pending an autopsy by the state.
Gleaton said Wood admitted to shooting Price and was charged with one count of murder. He said she admitted to pulling the trigger and shooting him. No motive, however, was established.
The investigator said both suicide and an accidental shooting had been ruled out. He said the evidence and Wood’s statements indicated it was an intentional act.
Prior to the Jan. 25 ruling, Wood’s most recent appearance was a Nov. 30 status hearing. The hearing took place after the court had waited more than 750 days for an answer to Wood’s competency.
Barksdale said the hearing was a follow up from a Nov. 9 proceeding, during which he asked the court to get involved by ordering the evaluation they were waiting for.
Dr. Kiana Wright, assistant state forensics director in charge of doctors who do evaluations, attended the Nov. 30 hearing via Zoom as the DBHD representative.
She referenced a letter sent to the court about an evaluation that was completed Nov. 21. The letter was sent to Superior Court Judge Terry Massey, but Trammell also received a copy.
Copies of the letter were given to Barksdale and Buford, and they read the letter for the first time that day in court.
The district attorney was frustrated after reading the document, which in essence said another evaluation was needed. He asked Wright what had changed since the June 2022 evaluation that said the defendant was competent.
The doctor said she did not do the evaluation but was working off of reports of those who did the evaluation. She said she was concerned that Wood needed a criminal responsibility evaluation.
Trammel said Wood was entitled to a hearing on her competency, and Wright said it would be up to the court to decide if she was competent.
The judge said from the reports she had received, there had actually been three evaluations for Wood. She said in reading those reports, it appeared that the defendant could be restored to competency while being treated but immediately decompensates.
Wright said that was correct.
Barksdale asked the doctor if she was subpoenaed to testify, would she say Wood was incompetent to stand trial. She did not reply to the question immediately but after further prodding from the judge, Wright said yes, she would say the defendant was incompetent.
That hearing ended with the decision for a bench trial to determine Wood’s competency.
