WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — A Forsyth County judge set a $500,000 bond for a Winston-Salem man charged with fatally shooting Julius Randolph “Juice” Sampson outside BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse at Hanes Mall last summer, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.
Robert Anthony Granato, 23, is charged with first-degree murder and misdemeanor carrying a concealed gun while or after consuming alcohol. He has been held without bond at the Forsyth County Jail while awaiting trial.
Judge George Bedsworth of Forsyth District Court decided to set the bond at $500,000 after hearing arguments from Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Martin and Paul James, Granato’s attorney.
During the hearing, James argued that Granato was defending himself when Sampson was shot. He also said that at one point during the confrontation outside, Sampson lunged at Granato, grabbed him by his throat and threw him on the ground. That’s when Granato’s gun went off and Sampson was shot in the chest, James said.