Little River jury finds man not guilty of murder

By Patrick Massey of KDQN.net

 A Little River County jury has found a man not guilty of murder in a case stemming from a 2020 shooting incident.

The jury did not find sufficient evidence to convict Corey Tyrell Garfield of second-degree murder for the fatal shooting of 48-year-old Dennis Graves on Oct. 6, 2020. Graves was found lying face down in his yard with a bullet wound to his chest. According to records within the Little River County Circuit Court, investigators suspected Garfield was involved in the murder after Graves allegedly urinated on methamphetamine reportedly belonging to Garfield.

Felony arrest warrants were issued for both Garfield and another suspect, Cheleka Johnson, following the incident. Both were arrested the following month at a hotel room in Little Rock. The pistol used to kill Graves was never found.

Garfield’s attorney, Clayton Tinkes, successfully argued that prosecutors did not have enough evidence to tie Garfield to the murder and that witness statements included too many discrepancies.