RICHFIELD — The son of a 77-year-old Monroe man whose body was found near a mountain road Sunday has been charged with killing his father.
William Lawton, 30, was charged Tuesday with capital murder in the death of James Lawton, said Sevier County Sheriff Nathan Curtis.
William Lawton had reported to authorities that he and his father had been assaulted, and sheriff’s deputies later found James Lawton's body on the side of Watts Mountain Road. The father was last seen alive around 11 p.m. Saturday when the two left their Monroe home together. William Lawton returned home around 2 a.m. Sunday, according to the sheriff’s office.
At the time, investigators had named William Lawton as a person of interest, and evidence at the scene suggested a struggle had taken place.
“Evidence gathered at the scene and from the State Medical Examiner's Office led to the charge,” Curtis said Tuesday.
The charge of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, was filed in 6th District Court in Sevier County. William Lawton is being held on a $1 million cash-only bail because investigators suspect the man would leave the state if bail were granted.