A Monroe man is scheduled to go before an Alcovy Judicial Circuit Superior Court judge this month in a bench trial for the alleged murder of his brother four years ago.
James Lewis McDougal is charged with malice murder, felony murder, and other related crimes.
According to the Superior court calendar, his bench trial is set to begin at 9:30 a.m. on May 16.
According to a 2020 press release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, at about 4:35 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16, 2020, Walton County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a 911 call of a person being shot at an address off Jack Glass Road in the Gratis area of Monroe. When deputies arrived, immediate assistance was provided to the gunshot victim, Henry Thomas McDougal, 27, of Monroe. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased. He was the brother of James McDougal who surrendered to deputies a short time later and has remained incarcerated in the Walton County Detention Center ever since.