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Local/Region ‘
Fielding sentenced to life
B Fielding family
says ‘quick’ guilty
verdict will be
appealed.
—e—
By Timothy Cox ,
AUGUSTA FOCUS Staff Writer
AUGUSTA
Family supporters of convicted
éiller Robert Eugene Fielding are
questioning what they call too
quick of a decision, concerning the
guilty verdict faced by their fam
ily member.
~l%One day after finding Mr. Field
“ifg guilty of the May 12, 1994
“furder of Augusta social worker
"“Mary Colley Stewart, on Sept. 25,
.‘:é';Richmond County Superior
- Court jury issued a life without
I,pessible parole punishment to Mr.
“Hielding.
«uCarolyn Alston, Mr. Fielding’s
only child, is still dissatisfied with
“the ruling—even though the jury
“Z% after three hours of delibera
_tion — spared her father’s life.
__Ms. Alston claims the expedi
”ency of the trial which started
Friday, Sept. 20 and ended Tues
.day, Sept. 25, was due to Superior
-Lourt Judge J. Carlisle
bOverstreet’s insistence on com
pleting the proceedingsina timely
2pdannerin order to prepare for his
-Véacation.
“'*We were told (by our attor
'tiéys) the judge was going to make
“diire this trial ended by October 1
— before he was to go on vaca
:til\‘:Qn,” said adistraught Ms. Alston
Jpoments after the verdict was
+handed down. “Why else would
things move along so fast?
bit*T felt it would be this way from
day-one. We knew he couldn’t get
‘@¥air trial - especially right here
%’Augusta,” said the 27-year-old
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YN 4 . -
JUSTICE SERVED? The family of Robert Eugene Fielding says
Augusta was not a fair venue for the murder trial. From left
are: Peter Campbell, Carolyn Alston, Elizabeth Campbell,
Willie Holland and Dorothy Roberts. (Photo by Timothy Cox)
woman who lived in the Manhat
tan section of New York for about
12 years, she said.
The Augusta Focus attempted
to reach Judge Overstreet at his
office, but he was unavailable for
comment.
Mr. Fielding’s older brother,
Willie Holland, 46, said he’s not
convinced his brother is guilty.
“Iknow hedidn’tdoit.” Whether
his brother is mentally retarded,
which was used as a defense by
Mr. Fielding’s attorney Peter
Johnson, Mr. Holland said his
brother, who’s one year his junior,
did attend special education
classes while in school.
Dorothy Roberts, 41, one of Mr.
Fielding’s four sisters, also said
the trial should have been relo
cated.
“How could it be fair? Everyone
here was reading the papers and
watching TV reports. Theyjudged
my brother based on the past
crime. It shouldn’t have been that
way,” said the Riceboro, Ga.
woman.
In 1989, Mr. Fielding was pa
roled after spending 20 years in
prison for the May 1969 robbery
and murderof 19-year-old Willard
“Toby” Hayes in Augusta.
Ms. Alston said the current case
will be appealed, but Mr. Johnson
will not be in court next time.
“He didn’t try hard enough. He
didn’t ask the right questions. He
never asked about the enormous
insurance settlement Mr. (War
ren Weir) Stewart received after
his wife’s death. And he should
have questioned (prosecutor) Dis
trict Attorney Danny Craig’s in
volvement. He’s Mr. Stewart’s
personal friend. That doesn’t seem
fair.
“My father is an innocent man,”
she said.
Ms. Alston said the family is
already in appeal consultation
with local defense attorney
Michael Garrett.
While the jury decided Mr.
Fielding’s fate, outside the court
room, Alfonzo Williams, now as
sistant chiefof police, Waynesboro,
Ga., said he believes justice was
served.
“The jury has done what’s best
for the community,” said the 25-
year-old lawman. Two years ago,
he worked for the Augusta Police
Department and was lead inves
tigator of the murder.
Ms. Stewart, who was 37,
worked for the Department of
Family And Children Services on
Fenwick Street.
Ironically, Mr. Williams’ wife,
Shirleta Williams, also works for
DFCS, although she was hired
after Ms. Stewart’s death.
Shooting death motive
is matter of opinion
From page one
said. Earlier reports said Mr.
Kitts returned Mr. Taylor’s bike
after he borrowed it, and later
damaged it.
Mr. Hightower called Mr. Kitts
a quiet kid who came from a nice
family. “He didn’t deserve to go
out like this. There’s too much of
Rape no cause for
alarm, police say
From page one
gold rings — valued at around
$2,500. The victim told police
shedidn’t know the suspects. The
incident occurred near the 600
block of Riverwalk.
Both suspects are described as
white males. One had blonde
hair, stocky build and wore a
black jogging suit; the other was
described as tall and slender with
spiked, short hair. The taller
man was wearing matching
green shorts and a jacket, ac
cording to the victim.
Richmond County Sheriff’s
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LT
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AUGUSTA FOCUS September 26, 1996
this happening. That’s why I'm
trying to help our young boys.
We have to catch them very
early,” said the counselor.
Police said their pursuit of Mr.
Taylor targets family members,
friends and neighbors.
“He’s probably just hiding out.
He can’t go anywhere,” the chief
deputy said.
Department Chief Deputy
Ronnie Strength said the police
are investigating the case and
urged Riverwalk patrons not to
be alarmed.
“It’s safe down there. We have
aman walking the beat 24 hours
— from the 600 block to 13th
Street,” he said
Not far from the Riverwalk,
around-the-clock patrols can also
be found on Broad Street between
6th and 13th streets, he said.
The woman was taken to a
local hospital following the inci
dent. No other injuries were re
ported, according to Chief Deputy
Strength. )
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