Thomasville Man Accused in Bat Killing Seeks Aniah’s Law Hearing, Pushing Court Date to Friday

Court documents allege the killing happened around 6:15 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12. Harrell's counsel is seeking an Aniah's Law hearing, a proceeding created by a 2022 Alabama constitutional amendment.

By James Bullard

September 16, 2026 · 7:52 am Updated October 31, 2026 5 min read

Thomasville Man Accused in Bat Killing Seeks Aniah's Law Hearing, Pushing Court Date to Friday

CLARKE COUNTY, Ala. — A Thomasville man accused of beating another man to death with an aluminum baseball bat is scheduled to appear in court this week, though his court date may move to Friday as his defense seeks a specific type of bail hearing.

According to court documents, Rickey Harrell II is accused of committing the crime around 6:15 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12. Officials said Harrell struck the victim, Roger Newton, multiple times with the bat, killing him.

Harrell was set for a preliminary hearing Wednesday at 9 a.m. He and his counsel are seeking an Aniah’s Law hearing, which would push the court appearance from Wednesday to Friday, Sept. 18.

Harrell is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

What a Preliminary Hearing Does

A preliminary hearing is not a trial, and no one is convicted or acquitted at one.

Its function is narrower. A district court judge hears enough evidence to decide whether probable cause exists to believe a crime was committed and that the defendant committed it. If the judge finds probable cause, the case is bound over to a grand jury, which decides separately whether to return an indictment.

The standard is low compared with what a conviction requires. Probable cause is a substantially lesser showing than proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and prosecutors typically present only as much evidence as needed to clear the threshold — often a single investigator summarizing the case rather than the full roster of witnesses who would testify at trial.

For the defense, the hearing’s practical value is frequently informational: it provides an early look at how the state intends to frame the case.

What an Aniah’s Law Hearing Is

The request that is moving Harrell’s court date involves a more recent piece of Alabama law.

Aniah’s Law took effect after Alabama voters approved a constitutional amendment in November 2022. It is named for Aniah Blanchard, a 19-year-old Southern Union State Community College student who was abducted and killed in 2019. The man charged in her death had been released on bond while facing earlier violent felony charges, and that fact drove the campaign for the amendment.

Before Aniah’s Law, the Alabama Constitution guaranteed bail in all cases except capital offenses. Judges could set bail high, but they could not deny it outright for most charges.

The amendment changed that. It expanded the list of offenses for which a judge may deny bail entirely, covering a range of serious violent felonies — murder among them.

Denial is not automatic. The state must request it, and the court holds a hearing at which prosecutors carry the burden of showing that no conditions of release would reasonably ensure public safety or the defendant’s appearance in court. The defendant has the right to be present, to be represented by counsel, and to contest the evidence.

That proceeding is what is commonly called an Aniah’s Law hearing, and it is a substantive evidentiary hearing rather than a routine scheduling matter — which is why setting one typically requires additional time on the court’s calendar.

Why the Date Shift Matters

The two-day move from Wednesday to Friday is a procedural adjustment, not a delay of consequence. Courts routinely consolidate related proceedings so that a defendant is not transported and a docket is not cleared twice in the same week for matters that can be heard together.

What the request signals is that the question of pretrial release is going to be litigated rather than resolved by a standard bond schedule. In a case charging a violent death, that is the expected course under the current law.

What Is Known So Far

Public information about the case remains limited to what appears in court documents and official statements: the date and approximate time of the alleged killing, the weapon described as an aluminum baseball bat, the allegation that Newton was struck multiple times, and the identities of the accused and the victim.

Authorities have not publicly described a motive, the relationship between the two men, or the circumstances leading to the encounter.

South Alabama News will update this story as proceedings continue in Clarke County.

Update: Murder Charge Filed, and a Neighbor Dispute With a Paper Trail

Rickey Lee Harrell II, 56, has been charged with murder in the death of Reginald Newton, 50, the Clarke County Sheriff’s Department said.

Deputies responded to Round Hill Road in Thomasville around 6:15 p.m. on Sept. 12. Investigators said the incident grew out of an argument over a missing dog, and that an aluminum baseball bat was used in the attack. Newton was pronounced dead at Grove Hill Rural Emergency Hospital, according to his obituary.

A criminal complaint filed Monday in Clarke County District Court alleges Harrell intentionally caused Newton’s death by striking him multiple times with the bat.

Harrell’s Aniah’s Law hearing is set for Friday at 9 a.m. at the Clarke County Courthouse.

Prior Disputes on Round Hill Road

Court records indicate Harrell had been involved in previous disputes with other neighbors in the Round Hill Road area.

In March 2021, Harrell was charged with third-degree criminal trespassing after authorities accused him of unlawfully entering or remaining on property belonging to Ronnie Champion, who is listed as a witness to Newton’s death. Those charges were later dropped and dismissed at the state’s request in May 2023.

In 2024, a Clarke County grand jury indicted Harrell on a second third-degree criminal trespassing charge, again involving Champion’s property. Harrell pleaded guilty in September 2025 and was placed on probation, under a sentencing order that prohibited him from having adverse contact with Champion.

Court records do not establish that Newton was involved in either of those trespassing cases.

A Conflict Forces a Change of Counsel

Harrell’s attorney, Ernest C. McCorquodale III, filed a motion Monday asking to withdraw from the case, stating that he had previously represented Newton and that continuing to represent Harrell would create a conflict of interest.

District Judge James Harding Morgan Jr. granted the motion and appointed attorney Bob McMillan to represent Harrell.

Conflicts of this kind are a recurring feature of criminal practice in smaller counties, where the pool of defense attorneys is limited and the same lawyers appear on both sides of a community over the course of a career. The rules are strict: an attorney who has represented the victim in a homicide case cannot represent the person accused of causing that death, because the duties owed to a former client survive the representation.

Reginald Newton

Newton was born Oct. 20, 1975, in Thomasville. Survivors include his mother, Karen Harvell Smith; his brother, Justin Reginald Newton Jr.; and several nieces, nephews, a great-niece and a great-nephew.

Visitation will be held Friday from 1 to 2 p.m. at O’Bryant Chapel Funeral Home, with a memorial service to follow at 2 p.m. The Rev. Eugene Morgan will officiate.

Harrell has not been convicted. He is accused, and under Alabama law he is presumed innocent unless and until the state proves its case in court.