Murder trial suspect returned behind bars

Jason Clary (left) and the late Travis Harold (right).

A local man who is the defendant in a murder case has been denied pre-trial release and is back in jail following his arrest on Wednesday, October 10, 2018.

Jason Dean Clary, of Hiddenite, stands charged with murder in the shooting death of Travis Harold, also of Hiddenite, at Clary’s home on April 11, 2016. His first trial ended in a mistrial on September 12, 2018, when the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict.

Alexander County Sheriff Chris Bowman told The Times that a condition of Clary’s pre-trial release is drug testing. A drug test was administered a few days ago, and the results came back on October 10, showing that Clary had tested positive for methamphetamine in his system. Accordingly, Pre-Trial Release personnel notified the Sheriff’s Office of the test results also on October 10, and stated that Clary would need to be taken back into custody, as he had violated a condition of the release.

Bowman noted that Pre-Trial and Sheriff’s officers went to Clary’s home and arrested him October 10. Clary is currently in the custody of the Alexander County Sheriff’s Office under no bond. He will appear before a Superior Court judge later this month regarding his bond and pre-trial release status, said the Sheriff.

Bowman also said the Clary residence was searched on October 10, a condition of Clary’s release, but nothing incriminating was found.