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Thomasville duo sentenced to life Tuesday

A Grady County jury has convicted two Thomasville men for last summer’s shooting death of Jerry Bodiford, an innocent bystander according to prosecutors.
Shortly after the guilty verdict was announced at the Grady County Courthouse Tuesday afternoon, Superior Court Judge A. Wallace Cato sentenced the men to life in prison.
Shadrick Ron Killens and Frankie Rashard Williams Jr. were convicted of felony murder, aggravated assault and malice murder for the July 27, 2011, death of the 21-year-old Bodiford.
Killens’ attorney was Joe Brown Jr. of Decatur, and Williams’ attorney was Billy Grantham of Donalsonville.
“I thought that we had an excellent jury that was diligent and looked at the circumstances in coming up with their verdict,” said District Attorney Joe Mulholland, who prosecuted the case.  
“It was a tragic case in that it was a senseless killing,” said Mulholland, “the victim, by all accounts, was present when the altercation took place, but wasn’t part of the altercation at all and was senselessly gunned down.”
That altercation had involved a disagreement over a girl, according to police information.
Bodiford was later standing with a group of men at the corner of 11th Street and Washington Homes Drive Southwest when shots were fired into the crowd from a passing car that Wednesday night.
Although the murder weapon was never found, Mulholland said shell casings found in the car driven by Killens and  Williams matched the bullet trajectory in the victim.
Hours after the shooting, both Killens and Williams had turned themselves over to law enforcement officers. They now face life in the Georgia State Prison System.

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