Cobb Jury Considers Fate of Gang Members Accused of Murder

A Cobb County trial of four men accused of beating a man and then running him over with a car in 2013 went to the jury on Wednesday, WSB-TV reports.

Prosecutors in the case against Antonio Pass, Kemonta Bonds, Johnathan Anthony, and Jekari Strozier want each man convicted of malice murder for the 2013 death of 36-year-old Joshua Chellew.

They allege that the four defendants, who are suspected gang members, were filling up their car at a gas station on Mableton Parkway at approximately 1 a.m. on June 30, 2013 when Chellew, another patron, taunted them about their gang.

Prosecutors go on to say that the men assaulted Chellew, but he ran into the darkness. The four men found Chellew, allegedly beat him unconscious then ran him over with a car, killing him.

Defense attorneys claim that some of the defendants tried to stop their compatriots from inflicting further damage to the victim. According to the defense, Chellew’s true killer is the car that ran him over, not the defendants.

Under Georgia law, a defendant convicted of malice murder will serve a mandatory life sentence in prison, and may be eligible for the death penalty.