Georgia man turns self in in Maryland for strangulation, Murder of girlfriend

Mike Lepp
·1 min read
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SPALDING COUNTY, Ga. (WJBF) – A Spalding County man has been charged in Maryland in the murder of his girlfriend.

43-year-old Carl Kearney Jr. of Griffin, Georgia, reportedly turned himself in to the Division V Clinton Police Station in Maryland on Saturday, February 17.

Investigators say he told them he strangled his girlfriend, 38-year-old Patrina Best, inside her home in Accokeek, earlier that morning during an argument.

Patrol officers then made a welfare check at the home, where they then found Best inside, unresponsive. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Kearney is charged with 1st and 2nd Degree Murder.

According to the Spalding High School website, Kearney is listed as the school’s head football coach. The Griffin-Spalding School System website also states that he was named the 2023 2-AAAA Coach of the Year.

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