A Georgia jury convicted a man who had been on the run for more than a year after skipping a court hearing, following the 2017 murder of his wife.

Jonathan Bates has been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Cyndie Bates, 28. Atlanta Journal-Constitution repots that a Paulding County jury also found him guilty of manslaughter, aggravated assault, and cruelty to children.

Bates skipped a court hearing in October 2022 and fled the area. The Dawson Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Marshals Service arrested him in April 2024z

Bates killed his wife in their Dallas home, according to investigators. Prosecutors said he pushed her, causing her to fall and hit her head on a love seat. He incident took place in front of their two children, ages 4 and 7.

Channel 2 Action News reports that in 2022, Paulding County Chief Judge Tonny Beavers ruled that there was not enough evidence to establish probable cause for murder and cruelty to children. It later emerged that Beavers had a connection to Bates’ family.

He subsequently recused himself from the case.

“How are you going to say there’s not enough evidence whenever the autopsy revealed blunt trauma to the back of the head?” Bates’ sister Sandy DementI asked. “It’s not right and he doesn’t deserve to get away with this.”

Before Bates was assigned to a new judge, he fled before being arrested again.

He also received an additional two years on misdemeanor convictions.

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[Feature Photo: Jonathan Bates: Dawson County Sheriff’s Office; Cynde Bates: Facebook)