Chief Steve Payne was a homicide detective for the Clayton County Police Department and worked in law enforcement for my entire career, close to 40 years. Steve worked with Mike on a variety of cases including the State v. Freddie Guzman in 2008. Guzman was charged with 1st degree murder.
Guzman was the head of the local Brown Side Locos Gang in Clayton County. Thurston was fearless throughout the jury trial, as a young 27 year old prosecutor, securing a malice murder guilty verdict in less than 30 minutes in his first murder trial.
I look back on the many memories that we had together, and the many jury trials that he handled over time in Clayton County, the most important trait that stands out is Mike’s abiding friendship and strong advocate for the police department. He is steady and faithful in his friendships, and that remains true even today, more than 10 years after he left the Clayton County Office.
