Bond Denied For Man Accused Of Murdering Mother, Grandfather

Cody Wayne Booth allegedly killed and robbed his mother and grandfather in their Aurora home last January.

Cody Wayne Booth before his initial appearance in Dearborn County Court. Photo by Travis Thayer, Eagle Country 99.3.  

(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - The Aurora man accused of murdering his grandfather and mother is being held in Dearborn County Jail without bail.

Cody Wayne Booth along with his girlfriend, Margie Lynn Thompson, are accused of murdering Walter Bryant, Jr. and Faith Craig at their Douglas Drive home in Aurora this past January.

Investigators say the two also took money and jewelry from both of the victims that were later pawned off, so they had money to purchase drugs. The two then fled the area and were eventually captured in Somerset, Kentucky on January 20.

Booth was extradited to Indiana on Monday and made his initial appearance in court on Tuesday.

Friends and family of the victims, along with more than a dozen of Bryant’s fellow Vietnam War Veterans watched in court as Booth pleaded not guilty to two counts of Murder, two counts of Conspiracy to Commit Murder, two counts of Robbery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury as well as two counts of Conspiracy to Commit Robbery. 

The court then heard testimony from Indiana State Police Detective Grant Martin, who recounted the events from this past January. Among the things Martin told the court was that Booth had waived his Miranda Rights following his arrest and admitted to his involvement in the previously mentioned crimes.

“It was tough, it was tough to sit there and look at him knowing what he had done," said P.G. Gentrup. "You saw love and respect and the support from all the people that were in there today for Walt. It wasn’t anything about Cody, it was all about Walt. Walt was a United States Army Veteran, a Vietnam Veteran, highly decorated. When you look at Walt, you think of the words duty, honor, country, that’s what he stood for.”

A short time after Detective Martin's testimony, Dearborn Circuit Court Judge James Humphrey denied bond for Booth.

The judgement was based on the seriousness of the alleged crimes, safety for the community and Booth being a potential flight risk.

"They are very serious allegations," said Dearborn-Ohio County Prosecutor Lynn Deddens. "What makes it so egregious the allegations being that he murdered, allegedly not only his mother, but also his grandfather, who was a decorated war Veteran." 

Booth is set for a pre-trial hearing on July 30 at 8:30 a.m. A trial date has been set for November 5 at 8:00 a.m.

If convicted, Booth could face up to 65 years on the murder charges alone.

As for Thompson, she has also been denied bond as she faces murder charges. Currently, Booth and Thompson are scheduled to be tried together, but their attorneys could ask that they be tried separately.

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