LAWRENCEVILLE -- The attorney for a Dacula dentist who has been arrested in the killing 14 years ago of his girlfriend and is a suspect in the murder of his wife said Thursday that his client is innocent.

Speaking to reporters, lawyer Doug Peters said Barton Corbin, 41, will plead not guilty to the charge that he murdered Dorothy "Dolly" Hearn while he was a dental student in 1990.

Corbin remained jailed Thursday in a Richmond County jail. He could appear in court as early as Friday for a first appearance.

"Dr. Corbin has told us he is innocent of these charges," Peters said, adding that there has been nothing but "speculation, rumor and coincidence" in the case but that facts to substantiate the charges would be the only things relevant to the case. "I think my client is innocent."

Cpl. Dan Huggins, a Gwinnett police spokesman, said Corbin was taken into custody shortly before noon Wednesday after Richmond County grand jurors indicted him in the death of Hearn.

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Richmond County District Attorney Daniel Craig told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Corbin was indicted by a grand jury on one count of felony murder and one count of malice murder in the death of Hearn, 27, a dental student whom Corbin had been dating at the time.

Hearn's death was initially considered to be a suicide but questioned later because investigators were unable to conclusively pinpoint the cause.

The woman's body was found in her apartment on June 6, 1990. She had a bullet wound to the head, and a handgun given to her by her father was found in her lap.

Authorities in Augusta said during a news conference that Corbin's arrest resulted from the grand jury indictment but officials declined to reveal if a new piece of evidence also prompted the arrest.

Sources told Channel 2 Action News that new witnesses and new analysis of crime scene data played pivotal roles in the indictment.

People who knew Hearn said the details of her death never seemed logical.

"No one ever believed Dolly had taken her own life," said Jane Newsome, one of the victim's former instructors who is also a friend of the family.

Richmond investigators reopened the case following news media reports that Corbin, a 1990 graduate of the Medical College of Georgia School of Dentistry, where Hearn was also a student, was a suspect in his wife's death.

And yet, Peters said, coincidence does not mean his client is guilty of murder.

"There have clearly been two tragic deaths (and) there are two families who clearly are grieving, Dr. Corbin included," Peters said. "But I know of no provision under Georgia law or U.S. law that says in a criminal investigation an accused person can be convicted on coincidence."

Corbin Taken into Custody

Huggins said Corbin, also considered a suspect in the killing of his wife, Jennifer, was arrested as he was leaving his dental office on Braselton Highway.

"He's been very cooperative with officers," Huggins told reporters during a news conference Wednesday. "I think he was surprised we were there, but at this point he has cooperated with investigators."

Authorities said Corbin would be processed before being transported to Richmond County.

Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter said he received the arrest warrant from Augusta officials by fax. He declined to comment on what information led to the warrant and the indictment.

Porter also said there was no new information to report in the Gwinnett probe into the killing of Corbin's wife.

"The investigation is ongoing," he said, adding that there has been some grand jury testimony in the case. "There is no indictment right now. The Gwinnett County Police Department, assisted by my office, is continuing their investigation."

Corbin's wife, Jennifer, was found at their Buford home with a gunshot wound to the head two weeks ago. The couple was in the middle of a bitterly contested divorce when she was killed.

Corbin's attorney has repeatedly denied his involvement in his wife's murder.

The body of Jennifer Corbin, 33, a preschool teacher, was found Dec. 4 by her 7-year-old son at the couple's home. Initially, police suspected the death was a suicide but later ruled that it was a homicide.

wsbtv.com Staff Writer Alfred Charles and Channel 2 Action News reporters Deidra Dukes and Dale Cardwell contributed to this report.