On a Tuesday evening in Rome, Georgia, the life of 35-year-old Richard Jermaine Boatner was tragically cut short. The night of December 11, 2018, ended in violence in the parking lot of the Cottis Inn on Martha Berry Boulevard. What began as a physical altercation, a simple fistfight, escalated into a fatal encounter. Gunshots rang out, and when authorities arrived, they discovered Boatner on the ground, having sustained at least one gunshot wound. He was rushed to Floyd Medical Center, but his injuries proved to be too severe, and he was pronounced dead.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the Rome Police Department quickly launched an investigation. Through witness statements and evidence gathered at the scene, they identified a suspect: 18-year-old Cody Deangelo Thompson. Law enforcement issued warrants for his arrest on charges of murder and felony murder. The search for Thompson did not last long. A few days later, on a Friday night, he surrendered to authorities by walking into the bonding lobby of the Floyd County Jail.
Following his surrender, Cody Deangelo Thompson was taken into custody and held at the Floyd County Jail without bond, facing the serious charges of murder and felony murder in connection with the death of Richard Jermaine Boatner. The initial investigation suggested that the deadly shooting was the culmination of the earlier fistfight, though the exact reason for the initial dispute was not made public. Information regarding the resolution of the legal case, including details of a trial, conviction, or sentencing for Cody Deangelo Thompson, is not available in public online sources.
