Lacy Boles murder trial opens with competing accounts of husband’s death

Opening statements and first witnesses

The Georgia murder trial of Lacy Jolee Boles began hearing opening statements and witnesses on November 11, with the two sides giving conflicting accounts of her husband’s death. Boles is accused of shooting Daniel Akers shortly before Christmas in 2019. She denies murdering him.

East Idaho News’ first-day report described a nine-minute emergency call, questions about the bullet’s trajectory and disputes over evidence among the issues raised in court. Its coverage included observations from reporter Grace Wong inside the courtroom. The proceedings concern whether Akers was killed or died by suicide. [3]

Prosecution alleges a staged shooting

Prosecutor Jason Treadaway said the couple had argued about money before Akers left home and later returned, according to Court TV. He alleged that Boles placed a mop against the entrance to alert her when Akers came back. Treadaway accused Boles of shooting her husband and arranging the scene to suggest suicide. [2]

Defense says gun fired during a struggle

Brian Steel, Boles’ defense attorney, said she placed the mop by the door after telling her husband not to return. He told jurors she later saw Akers holding a gun and tried to intervene.

Court TV reported that Steel described a struggle in which the gun discharged when Boles reached for Akers’ arm. He disputed the prosecution’s account of a staged shooting. [2]

The investigation began in December 2019

The Paulding County Sheriff’s Office said deputies and emergency personnel responded to a report of a possible suicide attempt shortly after midnight on December 22, 2019. They found Akers, 36, dead from a gunshot wound at a home in Dallas, Georgia.

In its June 2020 announcement, the agency said detectives believed parts of his wife’s account conflicted with evidence at the house. The death investigation remained open while they awaited an autopsy from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

The sheriff’s office said the autopsy report received on May 29, 2020 classified the death as homicide and concluded that the wound was not self-inflicted. Detectives arrested Boles that day. The release listed initial allegations of murder, aggravated assault, false statements and evidence tampering. She was subsequently released on a $100,000 bond after a Superior Court bond decision, the agency reported. [1]

Earlier jury selection was halted

Boles’ case had previously reached jury selection in June 2026. Court TV reported that Judge Dean Bucci dismissed the prospective jury group after learning that one member had researched the case online and shared information with others awaiting questioning. The judge held that prospective juror in contempt and rescheduled the case for November.

In its earlier trial report, Court TV said Boles had pleaded not guilty to malice murder, felony murder and aggravated assault. The report also described delays in obtaining autopsy results during the pandemic and later accessing Akers’ cellphone. The November openings follow that interrupted attempt to seat a jury; the charges remain contested. [4] [5]