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Here’s everything you need to know about Lee and his alleged killer Sheldon Timothy Herrington.
Out gay University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) student Jimmie ‘Jay’ Lee, who went missing in 2022 at the age of 20, was declared legally dead by a judge last month, local ABC affiliate WAPT reports. His alleged killer, Sheldon Timothy Herrington, an Ole Miss graduate and native of Grenada, is due to go on trial for Lee’s murder in a Lafayette County courtroom on Dec. 5.
Here’s everything you need to know about the case.
Lee was a popular out gay student at Ole Miss. He was reportedly well-liked within the local LGBTQ+ community on campus and in the town of Oxford where the school is located.
He was known locally for performing as drag queen Jay Divaa in Code Pink, Oxford’s drag night.
His disappearance sparked great fear within the community. The group Justice for Jay Lee was created to bring awareness to his disappearance and accountability for his killer.
Lee went missing from his student housing complex in Oxford early on the morning of July 8, 2022. Police believe he was murdered, but the whereabouts of Lee’s body remain unknown.
Lee was involved in a secret sexual relationship with the Herrington, who was in the closet. Herrington was also active in the Abundant Life Assembly, an Apostolic Christian church where his father was an assistant pastor and founded by his grandfather.
Herrington became an immediate suspect in the case. He was arrested in late July and charged with capital murder.
Prosecutors allege Herrington strangled Lee because he feared their relationship might become public. Among the circumstantial evidence they will present at trial, they say Herrington bought duct tape and a large trash can from a local Walmart and made an internet search for “how long does it take to strangle someone gabby petito.”
Prosecutors say they have more than enough evidence to convict Herrington without a body.
Snapchat messages contained in court documents reportedly show Herrington lured Lee to his death on the evening of July 7 with the promise of reciprocating oral sex, an issue of contention between the two young men, according to reporting by Mississippi Today.
Lee reportedly had his suspicions about Herrington’s intentions, though, suggesting he was “just tryna lure me over there to beat my ass or something,” to which Herrington replied, “you trippin.”
Lee was simultaneously messaging another friend about the conversation, including his intention to hook up because of the promise of oral sex, although not specifically identifying Herrington. Lee was never heard from again, and the friend later contacted the police and helped in the investigation.
Surveillance footage obtained by investigators showed Lee departing his apartment and going to Herrington’s apartment shortly after the conversation. Lee’s car was later captured on video driving to the Molly Barr Trails student housing. The car was towed from that location later that day.
Surveillance footage also showed a person matching Herrington’s description jogging away from the scene not long after the car’s arrival even though the jogger was not seen entering the area. The same jogger was later captured on video entering a white Kia Optima at a nearby gas station. That car was pulled over for a traffic citation a short time later and Herrington was later confirmed as a passenger in the Optima by the driver.
Herrington was later seen in surveillance footage visiting his parent’s house with a company truck to pick up a wheelbarrow and a shovel.
Prosecutors theorize that Herrington strangled Lee in his apartment, drove Lee’s car to Molly Barr Trails where it was abandoned, jogged from the scene, and later used his company’s truck to dispose of Lee’s body.
When police questioned him later that month, Herrington admitted to a casual relationship with Lee but claimed no knowledge of his whereabouts. K-9 dogs trained to detect the presence of cadavers alerted four times in Herrington’s apartment – once in the living room and three times in the bedroom.
Herrington was arrested and later released on a $250,000 bond.
This case is different than most because there is not a body. Instead, Lee was declared legally dead at the request of his family last month.
“It is hereby ordered and adjudged that Jimmie Dale Lee III is presumed dead as the result of a catastrophic event that occurred on July 3, 2022,” the order declared.
However, one expert told local CBS affiliate WREG that the lack of the body doesn’t mean Herrington can’t be found guilty of Lee’s murder.
Criminal defense attorney Blake Ballin described such cases as “unusual but not impossible” to win.
“There are many different ways that the state could still prove somebody is dead even though they can’t produce a body,” Ballin said.
Herrington tried to change the venue of the trial, saying he could not get a fair trial in Lafayette County. A judge denied the request.
The case is set to go to trial on Dec. 5.
