Murder case bound over to grand jury

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James Carver, charged with murder and tampering with evidence in the shooting death of a Wilmington woman last month, waived his right to a preliminary hearing for both charges on Tuesday and his cases were bound over to grand jury.

Carver, 40, is accused of killing Heather Camp, 33, by shooting her in the chest Monday, Feb. 18. He was charged days later with murder in Hillsboro Municipal Court and tampering with evidence in Highland County Court in Greenfield (Madison Township). A grand jury will decide whether to indict him on those charges.

Carver appeared in court Tuesday morning at the Highland County Justice Center with attorneys J.D. Wagoner and Bill Armintrout, who told Judge David McKenna of Hillsboro Municipal Court that Carver wished to waive his right to a preliminary hearing in the murder case.

Later in the morning, Carver appeared before Judge Bob Judkins of Highland County Court in a special session at the justice center and waived his right to a preliminary hearing in the tampering with evidence case.

During the first hearing, Highland County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jim Roeder requested that Carver’s bond be increased to $1 million from $500,000, saying that Carver has been communicating from jail with connections around the country trying to raise money to post bond.

Roeder said Carver has “significant connections” with the Aryan Brotherhood which, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, is a violent white supremacist prison gang and national crime syndicate.

Carver has several tattoos commonly associated with white supremacy.

McKenna said Carver is being held on a $500,000 bond in both his cases, totalling $1 million. The judge ordered that Carver not be released on bond until a parole violation holder on Carver from Missouri is resolved.

Officials previously said Carver was on parole through Missouri at the time of the killing.

McKenna said during the hearing that Carver has one of the most “horrific” criminal records he had seen in 20 years on the bench.

According to various sources, Carver has a lengthy criminal record including more than 30 offenses in Highland and Clinton counties, Missouri and Florida.

As previously reported, Carver is accused of killing Camp on Monday, Feb. 18 by shooting her in the chest, and investigators say Camp’s body showed signs of repeated physical trauma in the days leading up to her death.

Numerous social media posts indicated Carver and Camp were boyfriend and girlfriend.

Authorities were alerted when Camp was taken by an acquaintance to the Adena Greenfield Medical Center in the early hours of Tuesday, Feb. 19.

Camp was unresponsive, according to court documents, and officials said resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.

Authorities hunted Carver for three days and arrested him in Dayton on the evening of Thursday, Feb. 21.

Carver remains incarcerated at the Highland County Jail.

Reach David Wright at 937-402-2570.

James Carver, left, speaks with attorney J.D. Wagoner at the Highland County Justice Center Tuesday morning.
http://www.wnewsj.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2019/03/web1_f-carver-wagoner-1.jpgJames Carver, left, speaks with attorney J.D. Wagoner at the Highland County Justice Center Tuesday morning. David Wright | The Times-Gazette

James Carver, center, is shown standing before a judge at the Highland County Justice Center with attorneys J.D. Wagoner, left, and Bill Armintrout, right.
http://www.wnewsj.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2019/03/web1_f-wagoner-carver-armintrout-1.jpgJames Carver, center, is shown standing before a judge at the Highland County Justice Center with attorneys J.D. Wagoner, left, and Bill Armintrout, right. David Wright | The Times-Gazette
Bond continued for man accused of killing Wilmington woman

By David Wright

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