As Cobb Murder Trial Begins, Defendant Pleads Guilty

A Cobb County man whose trial for murder was about to begin on Tuesday afternoon decided instead to plead guilty to the charges levied against him, the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office announced.

Charles Renard Mahaffey, 26, admitted that he stabbed 26-year-old Christopher Reynolds to death outside a home in the 2400 block Brackett Drive in Marietta on Nov. 25, 2013.

Mahaffey pleaded guilty to felony murder and aggravated assault and was immediately sentenced to serve life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years by Cobb County Judge Robert D. Leonard II.

On the night of the murder, Mahaffey had gotten into a fight with his girlfriend, and Reynolds tried to break the altercation up. Mahaffey then stabbed Reynolds once in the abdomen and once in the throat with a hunting knife. Reynolds died at the scene. DNA evidence later linked Mahaffey to the knife that killed Reynolds, as Mahaffey had also cut himself during the stabbing.

When initially confronted by investigators, Mahaffey claimed a stranger had attacked Reynolds, but changed his story to self-defense when witnesses came forward.