Georgia woman convicted of murder after fingerprint links her to 2019 cold case stabbing

A fingerprint left at a 2019 murder scene helped investigators solve the years-old case and secure a life sentence against a Dacula woman, Gwinnett County prosecutors said Tuesday.

A jury found 52-year-old Carmen Marie Hunt guilty of malice murder and two counts of felony murder in the stabbing death of Ray Anthony Neal, 61. Hunt was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, according to the Gwinnett County District Attorney's Office.

"I am thankful that our cold case team consistently worked this case to a successful conclusion," District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said.

Neal's sister dropped him off at his Lawrenceville home on July 19, 2019. When she could not reach him the following day, she returned to the home and found him dead. An autopsy determined that injuries to his neck were stab wounds, according to Gwinnett County police.

Hunt admitted seeing Neal the night before he was found but denied attacking him, prosecutors said. Investigators later matched her fingerprints to a print recovered from the murder scene.

The case gained momentum after Hunt stabbed another man in Lawrenceville in 2022, according to prosecutors. The man survived, and Hunt later pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.

During Hunt's murder trial, that victim testified about the 2022 attack. Jurors also watched video of Hunt muttering, "You didn't get away with this murder," after investigators left the interview room.

The jury deliberated for about three and a half hours before finding Hunt guilty on all charges.