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Bonney's custody still costing Camden
By DAVID MACAULAY
Staff Writer Daily Advance
Friday, May 11, 2007

District Attorney Frank Parrish is pressing for the resentencing of convicted murderer Thomas Lee Bonney because his custody is costing Camden County thousands of dollars a year.Camden has been billed $15,662 since May 2005 for the safekeeping and medical expenses of Bonney, a prisoner at Central Prison in Raleigh.A Camden County jury originally sentenced Bonney to death in 1988, a year after the naked, bullet-riddled body of his 19-year-old daughter, Kathy Carol Bonney, was found beside the Dismal Swamp Canal. The N.C. Supreme Court later voided his death sentence, however, after medical experts determined that he was suffering from a multiple personality disorder.Four years later, Bonney was back in a Camden courtroom for resentencing. His outbursts during the hearing, however, led the judge to declare a mistrial.A psychiatrist later said Bonney didn't understand the proceedings and was incompetent to stand trial.That's where things stood for more than a decade. Then in March 2005, the state of North Carolina, which retains custody of Bonney, began charging Camden for his safekeeping. Under state rules, inmates awaiting sentencing are the responsibility of the counties where they are charged. Camden is currently being charged $18 a day, plus medical costs, for Bonney to remain in custody.Camden Sheriff Tony Perry said he met with Parrish on May 2 to discuss the Bonney case."I'm not too pleased that Camden County has been paying for his prison costs, Perry said.Parrish said he, too, is unhappy about the situation."This is a considerable expense to Camden County and I hope it can be moved on," he said.Parrish said Wednesday he had drafted a motion this week for a hearing on whether Bonney is competent to stand trial. He hopes the hearing can be held next month.Parrish said he was "skeptical" about Bonney's lawyers' arguments that he was unfit to stand trial.The decision on whether Bonney should stand trial will be up to state psychiatrists, he said.Perry said he's not pressing for the death penalty for Bonney.Instead, he wants to see Bonney sentenced to life in prison.(Contact David Macaulay atdmacaulay@coxnc.com)

Bonney's custody still costing Camden

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