Bond was set at $3 million for a California man charged with two counts of murder in a shooting at the Elbow Room Lounge in downtown Columbus early Wednesday.
Bond was set for Daniel Paul Copple, 43, of Lucerne Valley, Calif., during a closed Columbus Municipal Court hearing this afternoon. Copple is also charged with aggravated assault for a hit-and-run traffic accident that hospitalized someone Tuesday night in Columbus.
James Bennett Mann, 42, of Columbus, and Mark Caudill, 33, of Birmingham, Ala., were shot at about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Elbow Room Lounge at 4118 Second Ave. N.
Caudill died almost instantly of multiple gunshot wounds, according to Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant. Merchant declined to release more information about the nature of the victims” wounds.
Mann was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital, and died later in the morning.
Murder charges are currently pending against 43-year-old Daniel Paul Copple, of Lucerne Valley, Calif., who is expected to appear today in Municipal Court.
Meanwhile, police are still trying to piece together the events surrounding the shooting.
Copple, who was staying at the Gilmer Inn, had struck a pedestrian with his car late Tuesday and left the scene, according to police.
His truck”s license plate number was traced to the Gilmer Inn, where officers were when the shooting occurred.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found Copple nearby with a handgun beside him. He was taken into custody without incident, but began cursing officers when put inside the squad car.
The cause of the shooting remains unclear, although the investigation is ongoing, said police Public Information Officer Terrie Songer.
At least one witness has come forward and is willing to testify about the shooting, according to sources in the police department.
All the shots, fewer than 10 total, were fired in the confined space of the lounge.
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