ATLANTA — Jordyn Jones, accused of murdering her best friend Alexis Crawford last October with her boyfriend Barron Brantley, was denied bond.
Her bond hearing was scheduled for 1 p.m. and started shortly after 2:15 p.m.
It comes a little more than nine months after investigators say Crawford was strangled to death by Jones, who was also her roommate, and Brantley.
The brutal case devastated the Atlanta University Center community and sent a shudder both through Atlanta and around the country.
In the hearing, the lawyer revealed more about alleged direct messages Jones sent to Brantley. He went on to say that Jones urged Brantley to "get the job done" and discard the video evidence outside of the apartment complex.
Crawford's mother also made a statement in the court Thursday. She said that she has two children in the Atlanta area and she is concerned about what will happen if they come into contact with each other. She also gave a tearful statement regarding how it "isn't fair" Jones' mother will get to hear from her but they will never get to see Alexis again.
At a preliminary hearing last November, a detective testified to the callousness of the murder, revealing details which included Brantley allegedly strangling Crawford while Jones allegedly held a plastic bag over her head.
After an intensive days-long search followed her being reported missing, Crawford's body was found in a Decatur park. According to detectives, both Jones and Brantley admitted under questioning at least parts of their roles in the crime.
The detective who testified at the preliminary said that Brantley told him he knew Crawford was dead because she stopped breathing after she'd been "struggling to breathe and she had sounds of agony." He was also accused of raping her just days prior to the murder.
Yesterday, Crawford's mother issued a statement through a family representative, Rev. Markel Hutchins, who read it aloud at a news conference.
"I cannot imagine a judge granting Jordyn the freedom to walk around until her trial while Alexis will never get to walk around anywhere every again," she said in a statement read by Hutchins. "Granting Jordyn Jones bail would be a slap in the face to me and my family, and essentially spit on Alexis' grave."
In a brief supporting the motion for reconsidering bond, Jones' lawyers argue they were not given sufficient time to prepare testimony from family and friends that they would say show she has community ties and is not a flight risk. They also claim that prosecutors did not prove she needed to be held without bond in order to "protect the community."
"This Defendant has no criminal history (beyond a prior misdemeanor charge); has ties to the community; has no record or history of ever having threatened or intimidated anyone, in her life; and has no indication that she is any type of flight risk," the brief states.
Jones was originally denied bond when the charges, including felony murder, were filed against her in November. She pleaded not guilty earlier this year.
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