Murder trial set for Aug. 8

By Staff
From staff reports
June 12, 2001
The murder trial of 24-year-old Joseph J. Ramsey has been rescheduled for Aug. 8 in Lauderdale County Circuit Court.
Ramsey was indicted for murder in July in the shooting death of 51-year-old Murray Battle.
Battle's body was found March 8 in a shallow grave in Causeyville about 200 yards behind a home on Bunk Newell Road. Police investigators said they believe Battle was killed on March 4, inside the Meridian city limits, and his body transported to Causeyville the following day.
Ramsey surrendered to authorities several days after the victim's daughter reported him missing, and led investigators to the burial site. He was accompanied by his parents, and subsequently entered a plea of not guilty.
Two other men 20-year-old Kelvin D. Ephrim and 24-year-old Marquis S. Adams were indicted along with Ramsey as accessories after the fact of murder. Ephrim and Adams are accused of helping dispose of Battle's body. Both initially entered not guilty pleas, but later pleaded guilty and agreed to testify in Ramsey's trial.
The trial has been rescheduled several times. The reason listed Monday on the defense's request for continuance was "DNA testing isn't back."