In the early morning hours of January 26, 2019, a man returning home from work in Athens, Georgia, made a grim discovery. In the hallway of his Moreland Avenue residence, he found the body of 36-year-old Latisha Gresham, an African American woman, who had been fatally shot. The man immediately called 911 at approximately 8:20 a.m. When Athens-Clarke County police officers arrived, they found Ms. Gresham unresponsive; she was pronounced dead at the scene by the county coroner.
Inside the house, officers located another man, 40-year-old Marion Adkins Jr., who was identified as Gresham's boyfriend. After questioning, Adkins was arrested and charged with the murder of Latisha Gresham. He initially claimed to investigators that he and Gresham had been arguing when a gun he was holding accidentally discharged, killing her. Despite his presence at the scene, Adkins had not reported the shooting.
Marion Adkins Jr. was indicted on multiple charges, including malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. During the subsequent trial, it was revealed that Adkins had a documented history of schizoaffective disorder, a mental illness characterized by symptoms such as paranoia and hallucinations. His defense attorney requested a psychological evaluation for him at the Clarke County Jail.
Following a three-day trial in June 2021, a Clarke County Superior Court jury found Marion Adkins Jr. guilty on all charges related to the death of Latisha Gresham. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, plus an additional five years to be served consecutively. He will be eligible for parole after serving a minimum of 30 years. An appeal of his conviction, which argued that the circumstantial evidence was insufficient to exclude other possibilities like suicide or an unknown assailant, was later denied.
