Man seeks bond in 2008 Macon slaying; prosecutor to review case after ruling excluding wiretap evidence

About two weeks after the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that wiretap evidence in the 2008 slaying of Gwendolyn Cole won't be admissible at trial, an attorney representing one of two men charged in the Macon case asked a judge to reconsider his client's request for bond.

Marlon Jackson, 36, has been held at the Bibb County jail awaiting trial since Halloween 2012. Before that, he'd served two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting the possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Bibb County prosecutor Sandra Matson asked the judge Thursday to give her two weeks to review the case "with a fresh set of eyes" on the Supreme Court's ruling to determine what effect it has on the case.

Among the decisions to be made is whether to appeal the decision, she said in response to a question from the judge.

"If we do decide to go forward with a trial, we'd like to hopefully do it in early summer if possible," Matson said.

The judge set an April 18 hearing.

He said he'll consider Jackson's bond request then, if the issue isn't moot.

Gwendolyn Cole, 55, was fatally shot Feb. 4, 2008, when her home on east Macon's Bradstone Circle was sprayed with gunfire. Authorities estimated as many as 70 shots were fired from an assault rifle.

Jackson and 38-year-old Benjamin Finney are charged with murder in Cole's death.

After the killing, prosecutors secured a wiretap warrant on the cell phone of Finney, who authorities suspected was a drug dealer in Jones County.

Under federal law, electronic surveillance must be protected from alterations and immediately sealed at the expiration of a court-approved wiretap warrant. In Finney's case, it took 16 days for the evidence to be sealed.

Finney's attorney later filed a motion to suppress evidence garnered through the wiretap.

Earlier this month, the Georgia Supreme Court reversed Bibb County Judge Edgar Ennis Jr.'s decision that had accepted prosecutors' excuse for the delay.

Justice Keith Blackwell wrote that the trial court should have granted the defense's motion to suppress the wiretap evidence.

Speaking at Thursday's hearing, attorney Larry Fouche said Jackson had been working at YKK for about two years before his arrest. He hopes to return to work there.

Fouche said his client has a wife and children in Macon and is not a flight risk.

Writer Joe Kovac Jr. contributed to this report. To contact writer Amy Leigh Womack, call 744-4398 or find her on Twitter@awomackmacon.

This story was originally published March 24, 2016 at 12:28 PM with the headline "Man seeks bond in 2008 Macon slaying; prosecutor to review case after ruling excluding wiretap evidence ."