Around the Region: Parolee Pleads Not Guilty to Murder, Man Sentenced in Attempted Homicide and Officer’s Firing May Affect DUI Cases

– Marietta Patch

Cobb County parolee and semiprofessional bodybuilder Johnnie Lee Wiggins pleaded not guilty Thursday to second-degree murder in a  that occurred 2,600 miles from where he was supposed to be living.

Wiggins, 48, entered his plea , Woodinville (WA) Patch reported.

Prosecutors in King County also filed an allegation that the murder of Woodinville High School teacher Prudence Hockley occurred in , Hockley's 13-year-old daughter, Woodinville Patch said.

Wiggins, who had dated Hockley, was allowed to move to Washington after his release from prison in 2008 on charges including aggravated assault in Cobb and Douglas counties. He was ordered to return to Cobb County in May after authorities in Washington said he assaulted his probation officer and was found to have a stash of illegal steroids.

Wiggins violated his parole status by returning to Washington without notifying the parole office, a Georgia Department of Corrections official has said. Woodinville Patch has found he was  at least two months before the slaying.

– Douglasville Patch

Ricardo Devon Baker, 24, will be sentenced to 30 years with the first 20 to be served in prison after pleading guilty to attempted murder and several weapons charges in a .

Baker was arrested after trying to rob the owner of the  with a sawed-off shotgun on Feb. 4, 2011. Baker pulled the trigger and demanded money but fled the crime scene without stolen property, after the gun failed to fire during a struggle with the owner. Deputies from the  found Baker walking along Fairburn Road with the sawed-off shotgun in his possession. Three rounds were in the gun's magazine and a test later revealed that the gun was capable of firing.

– Suwanee Patch

The firing of a Suwanee Police officer after an Internal Affairs investigation may affect several pending DUI cases in Suwanee and Gwinnett County.

Suwanee Police Chief Mike Jones said Thursday that Officer Michael Chavez was fired after an investigation revealed, among other things, a possible sexual encounter with a woman while on duty.

The officer was a member of the DUI Task force, and the department has 15 DUI cases pending in which Chavez was a witness. Also, the Gwinnett solicitor's office says it has 28 cases pending in which Chavez was a witness.

Among the DUI cases involving Chavez is that of . That case still is pending in state court.