Later court records list involuntary manslaughter and other charges in the 2022 death of Ronald Tyrone Hodge.
DECATUR, Ga. — A Covington man surrendered to authorities after a fatal shooting at a DeKalb County gas station in April 2022, and later court records show the case proceeded under charges different from the malice murder count announced at the time of his arrest.
DeKalb County police said Ronald Tyrone Hodge was killed early April 26, 2022, at a Valero station on Candler Road near Interstate 20. Investigators said Hodge and a customer became involved in a dispute before gunfire erupted. Police later identified Jurrell Kelvin Bethel, then 62, as the suspect.
Bethel turned himself in to the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office the following day. Authorities initially announced that he faced a malice murder charge. Contemporary reports said investigators had not released a motive for the shooting, and no evidence reviewed for this report establishes that the confrontation was planned in advance.
Hodge was found dead when officers arrived at the station shortly after 4:20 a.m., according to reports published at the time. Authorities described the shooting as stemming from an altercation. Early reporting differed on some details about Hodge’s work at the property, with some accounts describing him as a clerk or employee and another quoting staff members who said he regularly helped around the station.
The legal status of the case later changed. A DeKalb County Superior Court arraignment calendar dated Aug. 7, 2024, listed Bethel in case 23CR3948 on charges of involuntary manslaughter, reckless conduct and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The calendar listed a bond amount of $71,700 and indicated that Bethel was not in jail at that time.
The court calendar does not, by itself, explain why the charging posture differed from the malice murder allegation announced after the arrest. It also does not establish guilt. Criminal charges are allegations unless and until they are proven in court or resolved through a plea.
Reports from 2022 said investigators collected evidence and interviewed witnesses after the shooting. People at the station told local news outlets that the confrontation unfolded quickly. Police did not publicly identify a motive in the immediate aftermath.
The case drew attention in part because it was one of several violent incidents reported around DeKalb County gas stations during that period. Community organizations later held an anti-violence event focused on shootings and other violent crime at convenience stores and gas stations in the county.
The most recent public court record located for this report is the Aug. 7, 2024, arraignment calendar listing the three charges against Bethel. A later final disposition of the case could not be independently confirmed from the records reviewed.
Author note: Last updated November 11, 2026.