FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Joseph A. Cervantez, State’s Attorney
Thursday, August 22, 2024
UPDATE: DARON L. WOODS, 49-YEAR-OLD CHARGED WITH FIRST DEGREE MURDER
Joseph A. Cervantez, Jackson County State’s Attorney, announced today that Daron L. Woods, age 49, of Murphysboro, Illinois, was charged by Jackson County State’s Attorney, Joseph A. Cervantez, with two counts of First-Degree Murder, related to the death of 29-year-old Maurice Funches on August 21, 2024, in Murphysboro. Woods surrendered himself to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office just before 9:00pm on Thursday, August 22, 2024, without incident.
State’s Attorney Cervantez praised the tireless efforts of the Murphysboro Police Department, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Illinois State Police, and the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.
Woods will appear before a Jackson County judge on Friday, August 23, 2024, for a detention hearing.
Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.