Verdict Reached in Trial of Accused Athens Cop Killer: News Nearby

Jamie Hood, who acted as his own lawyer, was found guilty by jury of murdering an Athens-Clarke County police and wounding another in 2011, according to multiple media reports.

Hood was found guilty of malice murder in the slaying of Officer Elmer “Bubby” Christian and attempted murder of Officer Tony Howard, the Athens Banner Herald reported. He also was found guilty of malice murder in the killing of county employee Omari Wray in a separate incident.

The trial will now enter the penalty phase, Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said the jury deliberated for six hours and found Hood guilty on half of the 70 counts he faced.

Hood was found guilty of killing Christian and wounding Howard on March 22, 2011, and killing Wray three months earlier.

Patch reported at the time of the police shootings that Hood was in a car that Howard stopped in order to question Hood and others about an incident earlier in the day in which a man was kidnapped and robbed. Hood allegedly shot Howard in the face and upper body and then ran from the scene, supposedly shooting Christian who arrived to provide back-up.

The AJC reported Hood, who claimed he was defending himself when he shot and killed Christian, is the first defendant in Georgia to represent himself in a death-penalty case.

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