Man describes murder charge as ‘ridiculous’
Posted on Tuesday, August 21, 2007
BENTONVILLE - A Gravette man described the murder charge against him in his brother's death as "ridiculous."
Joel Zachary Bullard, 28, is charged with murder in the first degree, a class Y felony. He appeared in court Monday morning for his arraignment.
Prosecutors believe Bullard killed his brother last year and disposed of the body by burying it in a shallow grave.
Darrell Ray Bullard, 46, was last seen in August 2006. His remains were found March 14 of this year approximately 200 yards behind his stepmother's property at 10526 Georgia Flats Road in western Benton County.
When Circuit Judge Tom Keith asked Joel Bullard how he pleaded to the charge, Bullard responded that the charge was "ridiculous"before entering a not-guilty plea.
An omnibus hearing in the case is scheduled for 8: 30 a.m. Oct. 11.
According to court documents, in the first week of August 2006, Darrell Bullard went to the home of his stepmother - Debbie McGuire - to spend a few days. McGuire told Benton County Sheriff's Office deputies the brothers had an argument after Darrell Bullard called his younger brother fat, according to an affidavit of probable cause in the case.
McGuire didn't believe the argument was serious, and she went to bed. She went downstairs later that night and saw that a sheet on the couch was missing, the affidavit states. Joel Bullard told her his older brother had spilled beer on the sheet. McGuire also remembered hearing a "thump, thump"sound.
She told investigators Joel Bullard told her his brother had left earlier the next morning because he had found work, court documents state.
On Nov. 13, 2006, McGuire's property was searched with cadaver dogs, but the animals did not alert to any human remains. Several months later, another search with cadaver dogs revealed the body.
DNA testing confirmed the remains as those of Darrell Bullard. A forensic anthropologist found he had four broken ribs on his right side and a broken rib on his left side.
BCSO investigators also found blood on a couch in McGuire's living room. DNA testing determined that the DNA profile from the blood and bones came from the same source.
Joel Bullard is also charged with domestic battering in the second degree, a class B felony, for hitting another brother with a metal chair. A pretrial hearing in the battery case is scheduled for 8: 30 a.m. Jan. 14.
If convicted, Joel Bullard could receive a sentence of 10 to 40 years or life in prison. He is being held in the Benton County Jail in lieu of $ 150, 000 bond. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge David Clinger.
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