The family of the man accused of killing an Athens police officer is getting death threats, the suspect's mother told Channel 2 Action News.

Azalee Hood told Channel 2 that she has not told law enforcement authorities about the threatening emails she said she has received, but she has an opinion about the unidentified people who sent them

"They got no heart, just a big hole there consumed with hate," she said.

Her son Jamie Hood is accused of fatally shooting Athens-Clarke County police Senior Police Officer Elmer "Buddy" Christian and wounding Senior Police Officer Tony Howard on March 22, 2011.

The case has been slowed by repeated delays in court proceedings and Hood's arguments with his public defenders, who he has tried to get removed from the case.

Hood has pleaded not guilty in the death penalty case.