Man hunted down ex’s boyfriend with shotgun, Georgia officials say. He got prison time
A man was armed with a sawed-off shotgun when he hunted down his ex’s new boyfriend and killed him, Georgia officials said.
Now, the man faces time behind bars in the deadly “love triangle” shooting, according to the Henry County District Attorney’s Office.
James Blake McAllister, 41, was found guilty on several counts, including malice murder. He was sentenced to “life plus 65 years in prison” on Friday, Nov. 4, prosecutors wrote in a news release.
Officials in their release didn’t list attorney information for McAllister.
The case dates to July 6, 2019, when 32-year-old Steven “Hawk” Nichols was preparing to meet his girlfriend at a Dollar General in Stockbridge, roughly 20 miles southeast of Atlanta.
At the time, Nichols was in a relationship with a woman McAllister previously had dated. McAllister is accused of waiting outside the Dollar General with a shotgun before confronting his ex’s new boyfriend.
“McAllister pointed the gun at Nichols as he was running away for safety,” officials wrote in their news release. “McAllister also pointed the illegal firearm at a customer sitting in her car before leaving the store to hunt down Nichols. McAllister then went to the victim’s Stockbridge home, where he shot and killed him.”
McAllister also is accused of pointing the gun at his ex. He barricaded himself in a Clayton County home before he was caught and arrested, prosecutors wrote.
“This is a dangerous man who inflicted violence on three people that day,” District Attorney Darius Pattillo wrote in the release. “He also jeopardized the safety of law enforcement and the public. The victim’s family is grateful to see justice served with this conviction.”
After a shotgun was found buried outside McAllister’s home, a jury convicted him of “one count of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, three counts of aggravated assault, and three counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, as well as one count each of possession of an illegal firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and tampering with evidence,” according to prosecutors.
This story was originally published November 7, 2022 at 5:59 AM with the headline "Man hunted down ex’s boyfriend with shotgun, Georgia officials say. He got prison time."
