CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — A man who shot his pregnant girlfriend and her uncle to death was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole plus 30 years for a double murder and feticide.
Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office said Kristopher Martin Johnson, 34, was sentenced on two counts of malice murder, feticide, exploitation and intimidation of disabled adult, and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
In March 2021, Johnson fatally shot his pregnant girlfriend Carla Marie Payne, 30, and her uncle Thomas Richard “Doodle” Donaldson, 65, at a home the three of them shared on Old Donaldson Road in Canton.
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After the shooting, Johnson left the home driving his Chevrolet Avalanche truck to the Ingles parking lot in Canton, where he called his mother, who advised him to call law enforcement.
He did so shortly after.
Canton Police and Cherokee Sheriff’s Office arrived at the home and found Payne and Donaldson, dead, in separate bedrooms. An autopsy of both individuals ruled their deaths as homicides.
“Carla was preparing to welcome baby Mason into the world while the father of her child was living a double life, messaging other women and purchasing firearms. He took the lives of three precious souls, one of whom never even got the chance to take his first breath,” said Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Rachel Ashe, of the Domestic Violence Unit, who prosecuted this case on behalf of the State.
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Johnson reportedly suffers from mental health issues, however, officials say there was no evidence his mental stability was in question at the time of the shooting.
“While the defendant suffers from mental illness, there is nothing in the evidence to indicate that his mental illness was the cause of this incident. Instead, the evidence shows that Carla tried to end the relationship, and he responded by ending her life, the life of their unborn child, and the life of her uncle,” said Ashe.
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