A Georgia man who seemingly turned his life around from a gang member to a sought-out motivational speaker is the subject of an investigation into a woman’s death. He currently faces felony charges for the suspected murder. Additionally, he is set to appear in court soon for an older charge of marijuana possession.
Although once part of a gang, the man broke free of that lifestyle and instead re-set his course in life by becoming an entrepreneur. He was apparently a prominent member of the community and often gave inspiring talks as a guest speaker at various events. Nevertheless, police suspect that he may have been cheating on his wife.
The woman who police say was his mistress was 26 years old at the time of her death. An autopsy indicated that she had been strangled, among other violent acts. When her body was discovered in a park, it took investigators a significant amount of time to pin down her cause of death. Police have not commented on what evidence they may have that links the suspect to both an affair and the murder that he is accused of committing.
Felony charges can have a significant and severe impact on a person if he or she is convicted. Consequences often include steep fines, and in the case of murder or other violent crimes, extended periods of time spent behind bars. While dealing with such charges can seem understandably overwhelming, most individuals who have been so accused benefit from being as prepared as possible. For some in Georgia, a plea deal can garner the most favorable outcome possible by potentially providing lesser charges and/or more lenient consequences at sentencing. Others may not fare as well with a plea deal — or reject any such offer as unacceptable –and instead, alongside their defense counsel, continue to fight the charges to the best of their ability through the criminal trial.
Source: timesfreepress.com, “Gang member-turned-entrepreneur charged in Georgia killing, was key part of mayor’s Violence Reduction Initiative“, Joy Lukachick Smith and Claire Wiseman, Dec. 24, 2014
