In a tragic incident on a Sunday evening in August, a family dispute in Midway, Georgia, ended in the death of 43-year-old James McCray. On August 12, 2018, Liberty County Sheriff's deputies were called to a home on Wilkins Road around 7:30 p.m. following reports of a gunshot victim. Upon their arrival, they discovered James McCray deceased at the scene.
The subsequent investigation into the shooting quickly led to the arrest of a suspect: James McCray's own 16-year-old son, James E.
McCray Jr. An altercation between the father and son preceded the fatal shooting. The teenager was taken into custody and charged with the murder of his biological father. Despite his age, the decision was made to charge him as an adult. Following his arrest, the young man was denied bond and held at a youth detention center in Claxton.
In the months that followed, the legal process began to unfold for James McCray Jr. He was indicted on murder charges and, in February 2019, was arraigned before a Superior Court Judge, where he entered a plea of not guilty. Due to his status as a juvenile at the time of the offense, if convicted of murder, he would face a potential sentence of life in prison rather than the death penalty. Court records from August 2019 indicated that plea negotiations were underway, though a resolution had not yet been reached.
