Macon man found not guilty of murder in 2021 shooting deaths
A Macon man was recently acquitted in a murder case involving two shooting deaths in 2021.
Jaives Jamal Fountain was found not guilty on March 20 of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and firearm possession charges , court records show.
His case stemmed from the May 10, 2021 shooting deaths of Quinterious Hillman and Jerod Lester at Avalon Mobile Home Community on 2621 Jeffersonville Road , , court records show.
The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office said at the time that Fountain “admitted to being at their residence during the time of the murders,” according to previous Telegraph reporting.
However, a recording of a phone call Fountain made after the shootings, which was later sent to law enforcement, was not allowed to be used in the trial, court records showed. He reportedly called a friend and discussed shooting two people.
Jurors were not told that Fountain had a conversation with a friend after the murder, in which he began “talking about having shot two people,” court records show.
Aisha Broderick, Fountain’s attorney, argued the recording could not be included in the trial, according to court records. She said the recording violated Georgia’s eavesdropping statute, which prohibits surveillance during private conversations.
Prosecutors said the recording was crucial evidence needed to convict Fountain, and Georgia doesn’t prohibit secret recordings of conversations even in private settings.
“We believe the exclusion of that evidence materially affected the jury’s ability to reach a fully informed verdict,” Susan Ryan, spokesperson for the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office, said Wednesday.
The judge’s ruling on the evidence was not available in court records Wednesday. Ryan declined to speak further on the case.
“As this matter involves an ongoing proceeding, we are limited in what additional information we are able to share at this time,” Ryan said.
Trequan Fox was indicted alongside Fountain in the shooting deaths of Hillman and Lester. Fox and Fountain’s cases are being handled separately.
Fox’s case is still pending.
