OXFORD, Miss. (Court TV) — A man is standing trial on charges he murdered a missing University of Mississippi student whose body has never been found.
Sheldon ‘Timothy’ Herrington (L) is charged with the murder of Jimmie ‘Jay’ Lee (R). (Oxford Police Dept.)
Sheldon “Timothy” Herrington Jr. is charged with the murder of Jimmie “Jay” Lee III, who disappeared on July 8, 2022. Herrington has pleaded not guilty to the charges. An indictment reviewed by Court TV alleges that Herrington murdered Lee while engaged in kidnapping.
At the time of his disappearance, Lee was a well-known member of the LGBTQ+ community at the University of Mississippi and often took part in drag performances, The Advocate reported at the time.
In 2022, the Oxford, Mississippi, Police Department said it was working with the university’s police to investigate Lee’s disappearance, and announced it had located his vehicle on July 11. The vehicle had been found with a local towing company after it was removed from the Molly Barr Trails apartment complex on July 8. According to police, Lee was last seen leaving the Campus Walk apartments at 5:58 am on July 8, wearing a silver robe or housecoat, a gold cap and gray slippers. At the time, investigators said they believed that Lee may have been visiting someone at the Molly Barr Trails when he disappeared.
At a bond hearing in Aug. 2022, prosecutors said that Herrington and the victim had known each other for about four months and had recently entered into a sexual relationship, the Oxford Eagle reported. Investigators also noted cell phone conversations between the two men on the morning of Lee’s disappearance and said that Herrington searched online for “how long it takes to strangle someone” minutes after a message from Lee saying he was en route to Herrington’s apartment.
Lee’s body has never been found, but a judge declared him dead in October following a request by his parents.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 1 – 12/3/24
- Both sides deliver opening statements
- Four witnesses took the stand:
- Stephany Lee, the mother of Jimmie Lee
- Jennifer Buford, Lee’s professor
- Jose Reyes & Khalid Fears, friends of Lee
