A Trigg County Circuit Court jury convicted Hopkinsville resident James Gentry on murder and robbery charges Tuesday although he was not in the courtroom when the guilty verdict was read.
The six-woman and six-man jury needed only 34 minutes to return the guilty verdict and needed half that time to hand down a sentence of life in prison without parole for 25 years against Gentry. He was arrested shortly after the murder of Christian County resident Joey Hayes, whose body was found in a barn off Buffalo Road in eastern Trigg County in November 2018. Hayes had been shot five times.
The jury also decided that a 10-year sentence on a robbery charge would run concurrent to the murder charge. Police said Gentry pawned a ring last seen in Hayes’ possession in Russellville.
Prior to the start of the trial’s fourth day Tuesday morning, police alerted court officials that Gentry had cut off his ankle monitor in Hopkinsville around 8:25. It was found in the 2600 block of Cox Mill Road. Gentry had been free on a reduced cash bond since March and was required to wear the monitor.
Judge C.A. Woodall ruled the trial would continue without Gentry despite the objection of defense attorney Michael Thompson with the judge saying Gentry voluntarily removed himself from the trial.
After the verdicts were returned, the jury began the penalty phase of the trial and heard a victim statement from Hayes’ mother Dottie Hayes, who told them she and his brother continue to try and cope with the loss.
Mickey Riley, the mother of Gentry, also addressed the jury as did his wife Leigh Ann who said James was a good father to their children.
In the end, the jury decided that Gentry committed the murder with the intent to rob Hayes with the aggravating circumstances constituting an enhanced penalty.
During the trial, Commonwealth’s Attorney Carrie Ovey-Wiggins said Gentry changed his story five different times during a 12-hour interview with Kentucky State Police detectives without an attorney present. She said no matter how many alternate suspects Gentry suggested, ranging from drug dealers to a group of Hispanic men, the evidence always came back against him.
Ovey-Wiggins said a rare type of hay found in the barn where Hayes’ body was discovered matched hay found inside Gentry’s jacket by investigators.
Ovey-Wiggins told the jury that both Hayes and Gentry turned their cell phones off before the murder. She said Gentry’s phone was then turned on around 90 minutes later, but Hayes’ phone was never turned back on.
In his closing argument, Thompson said there was no DNA evidence linking his client to the murder.
He told the jury that the Commonwealth offered puzzle pieces of evidence but said they did not fit together to form a guilty verdict.
Following the trial, Thompson said he had not decided whether he planned to call Gentry to the stand on the trial’s final day to face questioning. When he failed to appear, the question was rendered moot.
The jury was not told about Gentry absconding from the ankle monitor and an explanation of his absence until after the final sentence was handed down so as not to influence their deliberation.
Judge Woodall said it was the first time in his 15-year-career on the bench that a defendant voluntarily left their trial before the conclusion.
A warrant has been issued for Gentry for violating his bond. If he is captured in the next six weeks, he will be sentenced in court on September 8.
