The Georgia Court of Appeals recently upheld the conviction of a notorious Athens drug trafficker.
Kenyatta Campbell, said by authorities to be a major supplier of marijuana in the Athens area, was a central figure in the trial last year of convicted cop-killer Jamie Hood.
According to the prosecution and witness testimony, Hood went on a murderous rampage from December 2010 to March 2011 while trying to locate Campbell, who purportedly cut Hood out of the loop in a marijuana distribution network.
Campbell was said by authorities to have headed an organization that brought large amounts pot into the Athens area from the Southwest. In addition to importing more than 2,500 pounds of marijuana, the organization purportedly laundered more than $1.5 million in illegal drug profits.
In 2013, a Clarke County Superior Court jury found Campbell guilty of trafficking in marijuana, and he received a 30-year sentence, with the first 20 years to be served in prison without the possibility of parole.
He sought to have his conviction overturned on his contention that certain evidence should have been suppressed during the trial and that his defense attorney provided ineffective legal assistance.
The Georgia Court of Appeals upheld Campbell’s conviction in an April 27 unanimous ruling.
“We are pleased that the sentence and conviction have been affirmed, and we intend to fight to keep Mr. Campbell in state prison for the entire 20 years,” Western Judicial Circuit Chief Assistant District Attorney Brian Patterson said.
Referring to Campbell’s Jamie Hood connection, the prosecutor said, “His conduct serves as a reminder how dangerous the drug trade is, and hopefully the conviction and stiff sentence will deter others from engaging in similar conduct.”
That connection between Campbell and the future cop-killer traces its roots to the 1990s, when Hood was serving a prison sentence for an armed robbery conviction and he got to know a drug dealer from the Atlanta metro area.
After getting out of prison, Hood introduced his Atlanta drug connection to Campbell and Judon Brooks, who began doing business with the connection and gave Hood a “cut” from each transaction.
After a while, Brooks and Campbell began doing business directly with the connection, denying Hood his share of the action. That enraged Hood, who planned to kill Brooks and Campbell for revenge.
In December 2010, Hood shot and killed Brooks’ best friend, Kenneth Omari Wray as a means of “sending a message.” Three months later, in March 2011, Hood kidnapped Brooks and was taking him somewhere to kill him when Brooks escaped from the trunk of Hood’s car. When Hood saw Brooks get out of the trunk at a red light, Hood reportedly wanted to kill him right there, but chose not to because other motorists were around as witnesses.
When Athens-Clarke County Senior Police Officer Tony Howard stopped a vehicle in which Hood was a passenger, Hood got out of the vehicle and shot the officer in the face and shoulder. As he ran from where the officer lied wounded, Hood shot and killed SPO Elmer “Buddy” Christian III because he witnessed Howard being shot as he arrived on the scene.
While Hood remained at large the next four days, he reportedly threatened to kill even more people in his search for Campbell, including the dealer’s mother.
During his trial last July, Hood was found guilty of murdering Wray and Christian and attempting to murder Howard. Jurors voted against the death penalty and Hood was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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