The defendant in a Johnson County case being called a double homicide returned to Wrightsville two weeks ago and had a bond hearing last week.
According to Johnson County Sheriff Greg Rowland, Daniel Payton Brinson, 22 of Harrison, Washington County, was picked up from Cobb County Adult Detention Center on Tuesday, May 11, and brought to the sheriff’s office just outside the city limits of Wrightsville. There, he was booked on two counts of malice murder.
Brinson was then taken for his initial appearance, and the case was bound over to the superior court. No bond was set at that time, and he was moved to an undisclosed facility.
On Wednesday, May 19, the court held a bond hearing via Zoom. Despite no bond being set during last week’s court proceeding, either, that hearing was continued until June 2.
The defendant is accused in the shooting deaths of Charles “CJ” Garrett, 18, and Destiney Hope Kight, also 18, on April 23. Although Kight had familial ties to Emanuel, both she and Garrett and Kight were from Johnson County.
Emanuel County deputies assisted at the scene.
Brinson was said to be a known associate of Garrett’s.
Prior to being released to Johnson County, he was being held in Cobb County for charges in a separate incident, a vehicle pursuit on April 26. In that case, he faces several drug charges.
The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) continue to investigate the alleged murders. Anyone with information pertaining to the case should call JCSO at 478-864-4003, the GBI’s Eastman office at 478-374-6988, or use the tip line at 800-597-TIPS. You can also use the See Something, Send Something mobile app.
In a related event, family and friends organized a barbecue fundraiser on May 8 to benefit Kight’s family. Vanna Mullis, center, is shown presenting a $3,600 check to the late Kight’s parents, Will and Tosha Newsome.
Photos are courtesy of Deidre Ledford/The Johnson Journal.