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Michael Lipford Trial Continued in Peach County

Following three days of contentious motions and jury selection in the Peach County case of State v. Michael Ryan Lipford (20-CR-206)  and just before opening statements were to be given by the parties, this case was unexpectedly continued by the Court.  Lipford is...

Jail Inmate Pleads Guilty in Death of Jail Deputy

On July 28, 2025, Albert Booze entered a Guilty plea to Voluntary Manslaughter and Aggravated Battery in connection with the April 6, 2021 death of Bibb County Deputy Christopher Knight. Mr. Booze was sentenced to 25 years, with 13 years to serve in prison and 12...

The Prosecutor Behind the Paper Trail… Deed Fraud

How One ADA’s Determination Exposed a Countywide Fraud Scheme and Sparked Reform When Assistant District Attorney Jeremy Johnson investigated what seemed like a simple property deed fraud case in late 2022, he could have closed the file after one victim. Instead, he...

DA Howard Concludes Review of In-Custody Death in Bibb County Jail

The Bibb County District Attorney's Office has completed its independent review of the in-custody death of Stephen Fossett, which occurred at the Bibb County Jail on May 25, 2024. After a thorough examination of the evidence, District Attorney Anita Howard has...

Caleb Hooten Case Review

Statement from Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney Anita Howard Regarding the Officer Involved Shooting of Caleb D. Hooten On May 29th, 2024, I met with the family of Caleb D. Hooten to inform them that, after a thorough and independent investigation by the...

Case Update: Caleb Hooten

Case Update: Caleb Hooten On Tuesday, October 10, 2023, Caleb Hooten was shot by a Peach County Deputy. That matter was investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and brought to the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office in January 2024 for review....

Response to Media Inquiry

On Tuesday, December 12, 2023, I sent a letter to the chairman of the Macon Water Authority requesting the investigative report developed by David Cooke. Ideally, this report whether complete or not, should have been sent to the sheriff and me immediately so we could...

Press Conference Scheduled for Monday Related to the October 10th Officer-Involved Shooting in Peach County

Press Conference Scheduled for Monday Related to the October 10th Officer-Involved Shooting in Peach County Peach County, GA – Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney Anita Howard, Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Special Agent in Charge Jerry Jones, and Peach...

DA Announces Formation of Case Review Task Force

The integrity of all criminal cases in my office is the utmost priority to me. This recent situation in which particular evidence was damaged and not properly turned over to prosecutors is concerning to both the Sherriff and to me. Today, I announced the formation of...

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