Three Charged With Murder In Paulding Man's Shooting

DALLAS, GA — Two men and a woman from Rockmart have been arrested in the shooting death of a Paulding County man whose body was found in a ditch Friday morning.

The body of Ronald Chadwick Morgan, 31, was found alongside Holly Springs Road in western Paulding County. He had been riding his motorcycle at the time he was shot, Paulding County Sheriff's Office detectives said.

On Monday, the sheriff's office announced that James Austin Nicholson, 22, Carlos Fredrico Hightower, 26, and Magan Darleen Carroll, 24, were arrested over the weekend in the killing.

All three are charged with felony murder and are being held at the Paulding County Detention Center without bond.

All three suspects have Rockmart addresses — two in Paulding County and one in Polk County.

Sheriff's office spokesman Sgt. Ashley Henson said detectives believe the shooting was the result of an ongoing dispute between the suspects and the victim over property.

He said the investigation is ongoing and that more charges could be filed.

Sheriff's deputies were called at about 4:17 a.m. Friday to a possible shooting. They discovered Morgan's body and were able to determine that he was riding a motorcycle at the time he was shot.

A statement from the sheriff's office said Morgan lived in the area near where he was shot.

The case was investigated throughout the weekend by sheriff's office deputies with the Criminal Investigations and Warrants divisions, marshals with the U.S. Marshal's Service Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force and agents with the Haralson-Paulding Drug Task Force.

Detectives continue to ask anyone who has information about the shooting to call the sheriff's office criminal investigation division at 770-443-3015.

Photos courtesy Paulding County Sheriff's Office