In the spring of 2019, a domestic dispute escalated to a tragic conclusion, leaving one man dead and another taking his own life after a police chase. The victim was James Curtis Jones, a 45-year-old African American man from Atlanta, Georgia. His life was cut short on April 8, 2019, in the parking garage of the Arrive Perimeter apartment complex in Dunwoody.
The man identified by police as the gunman was his former lover, Roy McClendon-Thompson, a 42-year-old social studies teacher at McNair High School.
The relationship between Jones and McClendon-Thompson had reportedly soured due to allegations of infidelity. Just three days before his death, a fearful James Curtis Jones had contacted the police, reporting that he felt threatened by McClendon-Thompson. A Dunwoody police officer took statements from both men. McClendon-Thompson claimed he had discovered Jones was cheating on him and had blocked him on his phone. Jones alleged he had received threatening messages but declined to show them to the officer, who then advised him to cease all communication with McClendon-Thompson.
In the early morning hours of April 8, the conflict reached its fatal climax. Shortly after 5 a.m., residents of the Arrive Perimeter apartment complex reported hearing screams and gunshots. Police arrived to find James Curtis Jones in the parking deck with a fatal gunshot wound to the chest. Investigators quickly identified Roy McClendon-Thompson as the suspect.
When police attempted to locate McClendon-Thompson at his home in Ellenwood, he fled in a Cadillac. A police pursuit ensued, ending tragically when McClendon-Thompson crashed head-on into a dump truck in Clayton County and died at the scene. It was later revealed that at the time of the murder, McClendon-Thompson was out on bond, facing allegations of embezzling over $100,000 from the Tabernacle Baptist Church where he had been the chief financial officer. Following her son's death, Ruth Wilson, the mother of James Curtis Jones, filed a lawsuit against the apartment complex, alleging that a lack of adequate security contributed to his death.
