The case against a man accused of several crimes including murder in a fatal crash that occurred when he was allegedly fleeing from the Richmond County Sheriff’s deputies will be considered by a grand jury.
James L. Thurmond, 32, appeared by video conference for a preliminary hearing Tuesday, Oct. 25, in Richmond County Civil Court. After hearing from a highway patrol trooper, Chief Judge Carletta Sims Brown ruled probable cause existed to send the case to the grand jury for possible indictment.
Thurmond was charged in the Aug. 26 death of Brian Z. Heath, 29. He was killed when Thurmond lost control of his vehicle on Old Savannah Road and hit Heath’s vehicle head-on, Georgia Highway Patrol Trooper Zachary Walker testified.
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The crash occurred just before 8 p.m. Aug. 26 after Thurmond allegedly fled from a traffic stop. The trooper testified he was told a Richmond County Sheriff deputy tried to pull over Thurmond for failure to maintain his lane on East Boundary. The vehicle was going over 100 mph in a 35-mph zone during the pursuit, Walker testified.
There were two or three open beer cans in Thurmond’s vehicle and one on the roadside that was the same brand, Walker said. He was told that Thurmond had a small amount of marijuana on him after the crash and that Thurmond admitted to smoking and drinking before driving, Walker said.
Thurmond has a pending drug case in Richmond County Superior Court. He was released from jail on his own recognizance in July 2020, but a bench warrant for his arrest was issued when he failed to appear for arraignment the following month. He was served with the bench warrant following his arrest in connection with Heath’s death.
Sandy Hodson is a staff reporter covering courts for The Augusta Press. Reach her at sandy@theaugustapress.com.
