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Sins of Henry County: After Two Wrongful Convictions & the Death of Jerry Banks, a 35-year-old Cold Case is Reinvestigated
The biggest murder case in the history of Henry County, Georgia, began on November 7, 1974. Jerry Banks, a 23-years-old black man, claimed he found two bodies in the woods while rabbit hunting. The only problem for Mr. Banks ... the three shotgun shell casings found at the crime scene were determined by the GBI to have been fired from his shotgun. Jerry Banks was charged in the murder of a 35-year-old male high-school teacher and a 19-year-old female student. The Atlanta Constitution Editor, Hal Gulliver, wrote “Jerry Banks was tried twice, convicted twice and sentenced to die twice.” The only problem for the Henry County Sheriff’s Department ... Jerry Banks was innocent. This story tells how I, a total stranger, knew Jerry Banks was innocent the day he was arrested. Fear for my life, kept me silent for 35 years. The Jerry Banks story tells of one of the most reprehensible cases of injustice in the United States. Justice must be served.
280 pages, Paperback
First published May 23, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
December 17, 2013
It is so sad to think people can read this story that is so unbelievable, a story that needs to be told in every state in this country yet they disrespect the author who states in the book that because he could not get anyone to write this book, the job fell in his lap, and he had no other way to bring this story to the forefront, so he told this sad but true story himself.
If you want to know if this book is a good read or not, you should judge it by a reasonable review:
Perversion of Justice
A Double Murder in Henry County Re-examined
"Sins of Henry County" admirably recounts both a horrifying perversion of criminal justice and an immense human tragedy.
By Donald E. Wilkes, Jr. Professor of Law, UGA
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
"Now I don’t know how killers normally work, but I would guess that if you had just blown two people’s brains all over the place, you would not stand alongside the road waiting for the police, with a shotgun in your hand, particularly if you were black." —Charles L. Sargent
"Jerry Banks was not convicted on a mistaken identification by a confused witness. Jerry Banks was not convicted because of overwhelming, unfortunate but truthful circumstantial evidence. Jerry Banks was [framed]." —Charles L. Sargent
Charles L. Sargent, a retired Georgia businessman, has written a book that everyone should read and none should forget. It is (amazingly) the first book ever written about one of the most shocking perversions of criminal justice in the history of this state. Sins of Henry County (privately published, available from Amazon, 2012) tells the true but terrifying and tragic story of an innocent man who was railroaded by corrupt police and sent to Georgia’s death row, and of the brutal double murder for which he was framed: execution-style killings which remain unsolved after nearly 40 years.
Marvin King, 38, band director at Jonesboro High School, and Melanie Ann Hartsfield, 19, who attended Clayton County Junior College and was one of King’s former students, were murdered together on a lonely dirt road in a rural part of Henry County around 2:30 p.m. on Nov. 7, 1974. Both victims were white. They were probably taken to the isolated site at gunpoint. While standing near King’s parked car with their backs to their killer, each victim was shot from behind with a shotgun. When they had fallen, face-down on the ground, each was shot-gunned a second time—this time in the back of the head, causing instant death. The headshots were classic coup de grace wounds designed to make certain the victims did not survive. The killer (probably assisted by at least one accomplice) dragged the bodies to a thicket about 100 feet away and covered them with a blanket taken from King’s car. The car was then driven off and abandoned in a field three miles away.
The only person ever charged with or convicted of the murders was innocent. He was Jerry Banks, a 23-year-old married black man with three children, whose home was less than a mile from the murder site.
Jerry Banks was out hunting with a flimsy, break-top single-shot shotgun when he discovered the bodies about two hours after the slayings. He flagged down a passing motorist, asked him to call police, and patiently waited there for over an hour until police arrived. When they did arrive, Banks led them to the bodies and cooperated fully. Nevertheless, a month after the murders, Banks was arrested and charged with committing them. He was indicted by the grand jury one month later, and put on trial the following month. The trial, which lasted all of four days, resulted in guilty verdicts, and on Jan. 31, 1975—less than 90 days after the crimes—Jerry Banks received two death sentences.
Barely two months after the Georgia Supreme Court reversed his convictions and death sentences, Banks was retried. Once more he was convicted of both murders and sentenced to death. The retrial lasted only two days.
Sins of Henry County admirably recounts both a horrifying perversion of criminal justice and an immense human tragedy. A talented musician and a beautiful young woman were methodically and cruelly murdered. The members of their families were devastated beyond description. An innocent man was diabolically framed, twice sentenced to electrocution, and imprisoned for years. That innocent man, driven by the horrors of his experience, ended up killing himself and his wife, leaving their three children orphans. The innocent man’s family was devastated. Prosecutors, seemingly oblivious to police misconduct, relentlessly pursued a capital murder prosecution against a defendant any reasonable person would have realized was probably innocent. Depraved, conscienceless law enforcement officers perverted our criminal justice system, engendering untold suffering and misery in the process, and then escaped all legal liability. And finally, to crown all, a cold-blooded murderer and his probable accomplices committed the most horrific crime in the history of Henry County and then got away with it.
Sins of Henry County vividly impresses upon us the profundity of something a Georgia judge said nearly a century ago: “One of the most dangerous manifestations of evil is the lawlessness of the ministers of the law.” For this reason and many others, Sins of Henry County is an essential book. Buy it. Read it. And never forget it.
Donald E. Wilkes, Jr.
If you want to know if this book is a good read or not, you should judge it by a reasonable review:
Perversion of Justice
A Double Murder in Henry County Re-examined
"Sins of Henry County" admirably recounts both a horrifying perversion of criminal justice and an immense human tragedy.
By Donald E. Wilkes, Jr. Professor of Law, UGA
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
"Now I don’t know how killers normally work, but I would guess that if you had just blown two people’s brains all over the place, you would not stand alongside the road waiting for the police, with a shotgun in your hand, particularly if you were black." —Charles L. Sargent
"Jerry Banks was not convicted on a mistaken identification by a confused witness. Jerry Banks was not convicted because of overwhelming, unfortunate but truthful circumstantial evidence. Jerry Banks was [framed]." —Charles L. Sargent
Charles L. Sargent, a retired Georgia businessman, has written a book that everyone should read and none should forget. It is (amazingly) the first book ever written about one of the most shocking perversions of criminal justice in the history of this state. Sins of Henry County (privately published, available from Amazon, 2012) tells the true but terrifying and tragic story of an innocent man who was railroaded by corrupt police and sent to Georgia’s death row, and of the brutal double murder for which he was framed: execution-style killings which remain unsolved after nearly 40 years.
Marvin King, 38, band director at Jonesboro High School, and Melanie Ann Hartsfield, 19, who attended Clayton County Junior College and was one of King’s former students, were murdered together on a lonely dirt road in a rural part of Henry County around 2:30 p.m. on Nov. 7, 1974. Both victims were white. They were probably taken to the isolated site at gunpoint. While standing near King’s parked car with their backs to their killer, each victim was shot from behind with a shotgun. When they had fallen, face-down on the ground, each was shot-gunned a second time—this time in the back of the head, causing instant death. The headshots were classic coup de grace wounds designed to make certain the victims did not survive. The killer (probably assisted by at least one accomplice) dragged the bodies to a thicket about 100 feet away and covered them with a blanket taken from King’s car. The car was then driven off and abandoned in a field three miles away.
The only person ever charged with or convicted of the murders was innocent. He was Jerry Banks, a 23-year-old married black man with three children, whose home was less than a mile from the murder site.
Jerry Banks was out hunting with a flimsy, break-top single-shot shotgun when he discovered the bodies about two hours after the slayings. He flagged down a passing motorist, asked him to call police, and patiently waited there for over an hour until police arrived. When they did arrive, Banks led them to the bodies and cooperated fully. Nevertheless, a month after the murders, Banks was arrested and charged with committing them. He was indicted by the grand jury one month later, and put on trial the following month. The trial, which lasted all of four days, resulted in guilty verdicts, and on Jan. 31, 1975—less than 90 days after the crimes—Jerry Banks received two death sentences.
Barely two months after the Georgia Supreme Court reversed his convictions and death sentences, Banks was retried. Once more he was convicted of both murders and sentenced to death. The retrial lasted only two days.
Sins of Henry County admirably recounts both a horrifying perversion of criminal justice and an immense human tragedy. A talented musician and a beautiful young woman were methodically and cruelly murdered. The members of their families were devastated beyond description. An innocent man was diabolically framed, twice sentenced to electrocution, and imprisoned for years. That innocent man, driven by the horrors of his experience, ended up killing himself and his wife, leaving their three children orphans. The innocent man’s family was devastated. Prosecutors, seemingly oblivious to police misconduct, relentlessly pursued a capital murder prosecution against a defendant any reasonable person would have realized was probably innocent. Depraved, conscienceless law enforcement officers perverted our criminal justice system, engendering untold suffering and misery in the process, and then escaped all legal liability. And finally, to crown all, a cold-blooded murderer and his probable accomplices committed the most horrific crime in the history of Henry County and then got away with it.
Sins of Henry County vividly impresses upon us the profundity of something a Georgia judge said nearly a century ago: “One of the most dangerous manifestations of evil is the lawlessness of the ministers of the law.” For this reason and many others, Sins of Henry County is an essential book. Buy it. Read it. And never forget it.
Donald E. Wilkes, Jr.
August 18, 2025
I would like to respond the 1 Star rating. First of all my journey took years. I tried to get every reporter from Atlanta to New York to help expose this injustice. If the news media wasn't going expose my investigation, it was up to me. I hired an editor to clean up my book. When the book was published, it was so bad that I took the book off Amazon. I went over the manuscript and found over a hundred errors. I made the corrections my self and republished.. To the individual who gave the poor rating, I truly apologize if you purchased a early copy. If not I can only apologize my poor editing. And we will live with that. I will send a second edition if that is the problem.
I feel there may be other who were not please with my work. I had no choice but to write this story myself. Otherwise this story would have never been told. I dropped out of school in the tenth grade because I was dyslexic and could not keep up. I went to Vietnam at 17 and came hone and later did my best to tell this story myself. There is a Documentary coning soon. Thanks for you understanding.. Author Charles L Sargent
This year I have published the prequel and sequel to Sins of Henry County. Ever unanswered question is cover in Georgia's Darkest Days. And there is a Documentary coming.
I feel there may be other who were not please with my work. I had no choice but to write this story myself. Otherwise this story would have never been told. I dropped out of school in the tenth grade because I was dyslexic and could not keep up. I went to Vietnam at 17 and came hone and later did my best to tell this story myself. There is a Documentary coning soon. Thanks for you understanding.. Author Charles L Sargent
This year I have published the prequel and sequel to Sins of Henry County. Ever unanswered question is cover in Georgia's Darkest Days. And there is a Documentary coming.
May 29, 2018
Very good
Mr King was my band director and a finer man was never known. All of us kids adored him and knew how much he abhorred drugs. I believe he knew too much and was murdered because of that. I pray his family have found peace because, we, as his kids in school, know he did nothing wrong and stood up for kids everywhere. God bless you
Mr King was my band director and a finer man was never known. All of us kids adored him and knew how much he abhorred drugs. I believe he knew too much and was murdered because of that. I pray his family have found peace because, we, as his kids in school, know he did nothing wrong and stood up for kids everywhere. God bless you
July 23, 2020
Read third time.
It began a little slowly but gained my interest quickly. I become deeply involved in books of this subject. I remember this event clearly.
It began a little slowly but gained my interest quickly. I become deeply involved in books of this subject. I remember this event clearly.
September 27, 2012
Well researched, I knew a couple of people in the book. Having attended Forest Park Sr. High, and very active in the band I new Mr. King of Jonesboro. This happened after I graduated but I was very shocked and remembered the "rumors" flying of why they were together. The book leaves it up to you, but I don't think the man accused of this crime did it, I believe he was the 'scapegoat' as the saying goes.
February 25, 2013
The author is certainly dedicated to spreading the word about the injustice he feels happened in this case, but this book was poorly written and hard to follow. He jumps around, is repetitive, spells multiple names incorrectly (but then at times spells them correctly), and sometimes just reprints pages of trial testimony and case law. His passion is there, and that is undeniable, but he could have benefited from a better editor.
February 10, 2013
not impressed with writer's ability. zeal, yes, but came across a bit like a fruitcake.
June 14, 2013
I thought it was a good account of the incident, but it was a bit repetitive. Meeting the author at club was the best!!! Having him there answered so many questions I had about the event.
September 22, 2013
Having lived in Henry County, this whole story does not surprise me. It is so very sad that so many in high places were willing to go along with this.
January 4, 2013
Interesting revisit to a 1974 double murder in Henry County GA.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews