DA asks to move Tex McIver back to Fulton County Jail

ALPHARETTA, Ga. - The Tex McIver case took yet another strange turn Thursday.

McIver has been charged with malice murder and influencing witnesses in connection to the 2015 death of his wife, Diane McIver. McIver said he was riding in a rear seat of an SUV on September 25, 2015, when a gun he was holding discharged accidentally and the bullet hit his wife, who was sitting in the front passenger seat. She later died at a hospital.

Thursday, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said McIver's move from the Fulton County Jail on Rice Street in Downtown Atlanta to a dormitory-style holding facility at the Fulton County Annex in Alpharetta may be considered preferential treatment for the Buckhead lawyer and wants him moved back. The district attorney said he was not aware of the move prior to it happening.

"The Fulton County Jail's Alpharetta Annex is far from being a country club. It's material the same as the main jail facility," said Commander Mark Adger, Fulton County Jail.

RELATED: Tex McIver moved to Alpharetta Annex

Howard filed a motion requesting McIver be moved back. It reads in part:

"Defendant's transfer to a low-security facility without any valid reason Denise everyone, including the public, the appearance of a fair penal system and fair proceedings free from undue influence and privilege."

The jail commander said he does have a valid reason for moving McIver.

"The cell that he was in at the main jail was an acute medical supervision cell. We needed that cell for another inmate. That’s why he was moved to this location. The cell here is much smaller," said Commander Adger. "There's nothing softer about the Alpharetta jail."

Howard's motion also outlines another concern. At the main jail, they have been able to monitor all of McIver's phone calls. They don't have the same system at the annex.

The jail commander said they can monitor phone calls at the annex in the same way as at the main facility.