A murder suspect set to go on trial on Monday is on the run after a paperwork mix-up mistakenly allowed him out of jail, MyFoxAtlanta.com reports.
Quinton Jones walked out the front door of the Fulton County Jail two weeks ago, even though he was being held without bond on murder charges.
Jones was charged in the June 2011 death of 29-year-old Lamarice Westbrook, who was found dead near an Atlanta concert venue.
"My brother will never walk this earth again and he's walking around free as if he did nothing," the victim's sister told MyFoxAtlanta.
On Monday morning, more than 40 of Westbrook's friends and family showed up at the courthouse, expecting the start of the murder trial -- but Jones didn't show up.
The sheriff's office and the district attorney disagree on who is responsible for the mix-up.
The Fulton County Sheriff's Office says they did what they were told, saying, "The Fulton County Jail received court papers indicating that Mr. Jones case status was nolle prosequi [unwilling to prosecute] and dead docketed. Fulton County Jail staff never received documents indicating that Mr. Jones case was re-indicted. Jail staff released Mr. Jones based upon court orders."
District Attorney Paul Howard says his office filed the paperwork correctly when they added additional charges to the indictment and re-arraigned Jones, and then dead docketed the old indictment.
"Jail officials released Defendant Jones on the basis of the Dead Docketed, or original indictment, instead of holding him on the newest indictment in the system," Howard said in a statement.
"I don't care who messed up. I don't care who messed up in the system. Fix it, get him back, try him," Westbrook's sister told MyFoxAtlanta.
A bench warrant has been issued for Jones' arrest. The Sheriff's Office Fugitive Task Force is searching for him.
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