Murder suspects fight in county jail

Two Coffee County murder suspects have been separated after an altercation in the Coffee County Jail.

According to Chief Deputy Ronnie Whitworth, the altercation occurred between Malcolm Hunter and David Cunningham.

Malcom Hunter is charged with the murder of Ayanna Smith, who went missing in January 2017. Hunter was arrested on Jan. 26, 2017.

David Cunningham is charged with the murder of James Matthew Hill. He was arrested and charged with capital murder on Feb. 18, 2016.

Whitworth said a fight occurred between Hunter and Cunningham at the jail on April 23.

During the altercation, Hunter used a piece of metal off of a light fixture against Cunningham, according to Whitworth.

He said Cunningham received stitches after the altercation but is otherwise fine.

Whitworth said both men have been separated and have been placed on lockdown.

Josh Pipkin, who represents Hunter, said this incident could have been avoided.

“My client, Malcolm Hunter, made numerous requests to be removed from the same cell as Cunningham because of Cunningham’s mental state,” Pipkin said following news of the incident. “After being denied, Malcolm asked me to make the request on his behalf, so I did.

“This request was months ago,” he said. "This incident could have and should have been avoided.”