By Jason A. Smith
jsmith@henryherald.com

James Adam Bishop, 28, was acquitted Friday of malice murder, felony murder and voluntary manslaughter in the January 2008 death of 22-year-old David Lee Price. But, he remains in jail facing other legal troubles.

After his acquittal Friday evening, Bishop was taken to the Butts County Jail on a probation-violation warrant, according to his defense attorney, Gary Bowman. Authorities did not disclose the charges pending against him in Butts.

Prosecutors and Hampton police tried to prove that Bishop –– with malice –– cut Price’s neck during a fight at the defendant’s home, resulting in the victim’s death. After hearing evidence from both sides in the case, jurors disagreed. They rendered a unanimous verdict in Bishop’s favor.

Henry County District Attorney Tommy Floyd said he does not “have any quarrel” with the jury’s verdict in the case. “That’s what we have juries for,” said Floyd. “The case was well-tried on both sides. The facts of the case were before the jury, and the jury made a judgment. That’s our system of justice.”

The district attorney said he suspects the outcome of the case was, perhaps, affected by the fact that the incident took place at Bishop’s home, after Price arrived there.

“Sometimes, these types of verdicts result when these facts are present,” he said.

Henry Public Defender Gary Bowman said the jury’s verdict was a “good result” in the case. The District Attorney’s Office “didn’t have enough evidence” to convict Bishop of the charges against him, said Bowman.

“What they had was circumstantial evidence that could imply that it was possible that he cut the victim,” said Bowman. “They had a medical examiner ... who said it was more likely that the victim was cut from behind. When police arrived, they told my client’s girlfriend and her mother, to get on the floor, and [Bishop] came out of the kitchen and said ‘I did it, and I’m sorry.’” [The state] built their case around those three things.”

Bowman said Price “came at” Bishop with a knife during a struggle, and that the defendant acted in self-defense when he cut the victim.

“The actual cut was accidental,” said Bowman. “There was no evidence [Bishop] was the aggressor.” The public defender said “justice was served” in the jury trial.

One person who disagrees with those words is the victim’s mother, Connie Price, of Hampton. She said she was “not prepared for” a verdict of acquittal in Bishop’s trial, adding that Hampton Police “did not have enough of the evidence” the state needed, in order to prove the defendant’s guilt.

“The D.A.’s office did the best they could, with what they had to work with,” said Connie Price, 49. The mother said “justice will never be served” for her son, adding that she is “lost” without him.

“I don’t get to hug him, I don’t get to tell him I love him,” said Connie Price. “Half of my heart is gone, and it will never be back as long as [Bishop] is able to walk the streets.”

Despite the outcome of the case, Connie Price said she has “no hard feelings” for Bishop’s family, with whom she was friends prior to her son’s death. “Now, they’ve got [Bishop] again to deal with,” she said.

Hampton Police Chief Rad Porter did not comment on the verdict, and calls to the Butts County Sheriff’s Office for comment on the charges facing Bishop there, were unsuccessful.