• Publication: The Athens Observer (Athens, Georgia)
• Author: Betsy Shearron
• Original Publication Date: Thursday, July 23, 1992

DNA samples taken from the three men charged with stealing murder victim Jennifer Stone’s cameras do not match samples taken from the murder scene, results from the state crime lab revealed late last week.

Larry D. Brown, 34, Donald Wilson, 32, both listed as homeless, and Earnest Brown Jr., 29, a UGA employee, were charged earlier this month with stealing Stone’s cameras and selling them near her home during the hours following her murder in late April.

A hearing for Earnest Brown, who’s being represented by Larry Blount, has been scheduled for Aug. 6, at 1:30 p.m. in Magistrate Court. Larry Brown and Donald Wilson are being represented by Legal Aid. Their attorneys are also expected to request hearings, but dates had not been set at press time.

Despite the negative results from the state crime lab, police said the three men continue to be involved in the murder investigation.

“We can safely say that DNA evidence at the scene does not match any of those three men,” said Major Gerald Guntharp of the Athens-Clarke County Police Department. “We do not have at this point a suspect that left the evidence (at the murder scene). However, these three men are still a part of our investigation because of their connection to the cameras.”

Guntharp would not comment on what, if any, information the three men had provided police.

The Athens-Clarke County Police Department’s Drug and Vice Squad found one of Stone’s cameras in a northern section of Athens July 1. The second camera was found in Oglethorpe County. Police traced the cameras back to the three men. Earnest Brown is free on a $6,500 bond. Wilson and Larry Brown were denied bond.