ATLANTA — A jury is currently deliberating the case of Alton Oliver, who is accused of murdering Fulton County Deputy James Thomas in December 2022.
The incident occurred at the intersection of Bolton and Peyton Roads, where Thomas was found shot and killed in his personal car.
During the trial, Oliver claimed self-defense, alleging that Thomas solicited him for sex.
“Leave him alone, he wasn’t messing with nobody. He wasn’t violating the law. He had a right to be walking on that street,” said Kristin Howell, Oliver’s defense attorney.
Prosecutors, however, refuted this claim.
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“We are not the wild, wild west. You don’t get to go ahead and just start popping off rounds at people just because they solicit you,” argued Christopher Sperry, Chief Deputy District Attorney.
Thomas had been working with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office for less than a year, primarily monitoring prisoners at Grady Hospital.
He was off duty at the time of the shooting.
Following a four-day search after the incident, detectives arrested Oliver.
During the trial, Oliver testified that he was walking home when Thomas drove up beside him three times, leading to the alleged solicitation and subsequent shooting.
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