District attorney Jonathan Adams recently released the annual report on his office’s operations in 2017. ’We tripled the number of criminal cases taken to trial this year. We also prioritized cold cases resulting in convictions is a 10-year-old case and an 18-year-old case,’ Adams reported. The team at the Lamar County office includes Audrianna Holston, Cindy Adams, Nelda Allen and Anita Howard. Cases opened in Lamar County in 2017 are categorized by type in the report. Of the 251 cases opened here, 30% were drug crimes or DUIs while 26% were violent crimes. Property crimes accounted for 23% while juvenile crimes made up nine percent of the caseload. Cases tagged as ‘˜other’ made up 12% of the office’s workload. Key convictions here last year were those of Joshua James Cox and Bobbie Jo Sumner. Cox was convicted of malice murder, felony murder and two counts of possession of a firearm during commission of a felony for the July 14, 2015 shooting death of Donald Terrell Clark. He is doing a life sentence at Dooly State Prison. Sumner is serving 20 years at Pulaski State Prison. She was convicted of first degree vehicular homicide, hit and run and making false statements in connection with the hit and run death of GSC student Alexandra Desir on June 29, 2013. The other main initiative here is the ongoing cold case investigation into the 1984 torture murder of Donna Ogletree Johnson. That probe, headed up by retired FBI agent Jalaine Ward, is ongoing.
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