Booth Murder Trial Delayed Until September; Change of Venue, Judge Denied

Faith Craig and her father, Vietnam War veteran Walter Bryant, Jr., were murdered in their home in January 2018.

Cody W. Booth. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff's Office.

(Aurora, Ind.) - The murder trial of an Aurora man accused of killing his mother and grandfather is being delayed until later this year.

Cody Booth allegedly murdered Faith Craig and Walter Bryant, Jr. in their Douglas Drive home in Aurora on January 17, 2018. Booth and his girlfriend, Margie Thompson, killed the two in a robbery in order to get money to purchase drugs. According to prosecutors, the couple allegedly told police they woke up “dope sick” that morning.

Booth’s murder trial was originally set to start Monday, March 4 in Dearborn County Circuit Court. However, the trial date has been continued until September 30.

Booth, 29, and his attorneys have asked for the trial to be moved to a different county and for a different judge to be assigned to the case. Judge James D. Humphrey denied those request on February 22.

Humphrey has signed an order allowing Booth to appear at trial wearing civilian clothes instead of a jailhouse jumpsuit. The judge also granted the defense’s motion for a separation of witnesses, preventing pre-trial communications by witnesses both inside and outside the courtroom.

The next date for a court hearing in the case is a July 30 meeting on pending motions.

Margie Thompson pleaded guilty in February to two counts of murder. The 48-year-old’s plea agreement includes a prison term of 95 years, which is equivalent to 71 actual years. Formal sentencing for Thompson is scheduled for March 26.

Thompson could appear as a key witness in Booth’s trial.

If he is convicted, Cody Booth could face life in prison without parole. Dearborn-Ohio County Prosecutor Lynn Deddens said the decision was made to rule out the death penalty after speaking with the families of Craig and Bryant.

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