Retrial set for woman convicted of George County sheriff's killing
Jury selection is set to begin Monday in the capital murder retrial of Brandy Williams, one of two convicted in the 2010 killing for George County Sheriff Garry Welford.
Special Judge Richard McKenzie is presiding over the case in Lauderdale County.
Welford, 62, was putting out spike strips at an intersection near the Alabama line to stop a pickup truck involved in a high-speed chase with authorities on July 21, 2010. Williams, now 24, and her then-boyfriend, Christopher Lee Baxter, were in the truck that hit and killed Welford.
In two trials in 2012, juries convicted Williams and Baxter and sentenced them to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Both appealed.
Baxter lost his appeal in a 6-2 Supreme Court ruling.
Baxter claimed he was driving the truck when it hit Welford, though Williams was behind the wheel when they were stopped.
The Court of Appeals granted Williams a new trial, saying the trial judge erred when he did not allow testimony from Baxter that he was driving when Welford was hit.
The state Attorney General's Office petitioned the Supreme Court to ask that it hear arguments against the Court of Appeals ruling. The Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal.
"Sheriff Garry Welford's death seems still so fresh and like it happened yesterday," District Attorney Tony Lawrence said in earlier interview. "He was true public servant and is missed by so many."
Two days before Welford died, Baxter didn't show up for court for sentencing on a guilty plea to felony methamphetamine charges. Baxter was looking at jail time for those charges and when he didn't show up for court, a warrant was issued for his arrest.
The chase began two days later after a deputy spotted Williams driving her dad's pickup and noticed a passenger he thought was Baxter.
The 14-minute pursuit covered 16.8 miles along two George County roads.
Welford and another deputy were standing at the roadblock with their guns drawn when the pickup ran over Welford.
In a taped interview, Baxter is heard telling authorities he ordered Williams, who was driving when the chase started, to turn the wheel over to him.
This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 4:32 PM with the headline "Retrial set for woman convicted of George County sheriff's killing ."