Man pleads guilty to killing an Ole Miss graduate who was prominent in the LGBTQ+ community
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A man accused of killing a University of Mississippi graduate prominent in the LGBTQ+ community pleaded guilty Monday to second-degree murder and tampering charges in a second hearing.
Sheldon “Timothy” Herrington Jr. joins the defense in the death of Jimmie “Jay” Lee. disappeared Herrington from Oxford, where the university is based, in July 2022 arrested two weeks later and was eventually charged with capital murder.
a judge mistrial declared Last year, jurors were unable to reach a verdict after deliberating for more than nine and a half hours. Lee’s body was not found during the hearing, but the judge declared him dead.
In February of this year, deer hunters came across Lee’s skeletal remains in a wooded area. According to Mississippi Today.
At the first trial, prosecutors alleged that Herrington, who was not openly gay, killed Lee after the pair had sexual intercourse.
campus cameras It showed Lee leaving his apartment shortly before 4 a.m. on the day he disappeared. He returned 40 minutes later and left again just before 6am.
Prosecutors allege that Lee was at Herrington’s apartment and that Lee was upset when he left Herrington’s apartment. They said Herrington invited Lee back and searched online for “how long does it take to strangle someone” before Lee arrived.
Police said the last text message from Lee’s phone was sent to a social media account belonging to Herrington at 6:03 a.m. from a location near Herrington’s apartment. Accounts belonging to Herrington and Lee were previously changed sexually explicit messagesthey said.
Herrington was later captured by security camera running through the parking lot where Lee’s car was found. He was also seen taking a shovel and wheelbarrow from his parents’ home, authorities said.
Herrington is from Grenada, Mississippi, about 52 miles (83.7 kilometers) southwest of Oxford. Lee’s body was found in neighboring Carroll County.
Herrington and Lee graduated from the University of Mississippi.
Lee was pursuing his master’s degree. He was known for his creative expression through fashion and makeup, and frequently performed in drag shows in Oxford, according to a support group called Justice for Jay Lee.
Herrington will be sentenced Tuesday.
His lawyers were not immediately available for comment.
