Text messages from Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr.'s phone were presented during the Jimmie Jay Lee murder case showing a conversation of what happened after Lee arrived at Herrington's apartment for the first time.
Lee, a 20-year-old University of Mississippi student remembered as a beloved member of the Oxford LGBTQ+ community, went missing on July 8, 2022. In October, a judge declared Lee legally dead, but the whereabouts of Lee's body is still unknown.
Authorities arrested Herrington, 24, two weeks after Lee's disappearance. Herrington was a 22-year-old Ole Miss graduate from Grenada when he indicted on a capital murder in connection to this case. Herrington allegedly murdered Lee to conceal a romantic relationship between the two.
Herrington's defense attorney is Kevin Horan, a Mississippi state senator.
Horan's line of questioning Saturday consisted of the cross-examination of former Oxford Police Department Lt. Shane Fortner. Fortner was questioned by the prosecution Friday.
Horan asked Fortner if 71 search warrants were executed in the case. In response, Fortner said he did not know the exact number of warrants issued. Horan proceeded to narrow his line of questioning down to the search warrant for Herrington's phone. Text messages sent from Lee to Herrington the morning of July 8 were then introduced by the defense.
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Horan argued the first time any communication between Herrington and Lee occurred on July 8 was at 2:54 a.m., when Lee asked Herrington "You in Oxford?" Horan said his "client never responded" to Lee's inquiry.
Horan also noted there were no messages of Herrington inviting Lee over to his place during the first text exchange, adding Lee was not "coaxed" over to Herrington's apartment.
"My understanding is, based on what's been introduced by the state, at 4 o'clock (Lee) leaves and sometimes around 4:30 he returns," Horan said, referring to surveillance footage capturing Lee exiting his apartment to see Herrington for the first time.
According to Fortner, Lee sent a message at 4:36 a.m. on July 8 to Herrington saying, "I just wanted to be able to say I had you. Be the DL (down low) again. Fun to have been the first guy. Experiment over." Fortner said two emojis were embedded in the statement. The text messages were not presented on a monitor in the court, nor did parties describe the emojis used.
Fortner said at 4:53 a.m. on July 8, another message sent from Lee to Herrington said, "Also, I (explicit) on your floor so you should get that up btw. Oh, and the nude was fake too. Back to block now."
Horan moved on to addressing Snapchat messages where Lee and Herrington begin a sexual text thread sometime around 5:17 a.m.
Fortner said an outgoing call occurred from Herrington to Lee at 5:19 a.m. July 8. Call logs showed Herrington made another outgoing call to Lee at 5:20 a.m. There was no indication of connection on either call, Fortner said. A third outgoing call was made from Herrington to Lee at 5:23 a.m. That call was briefly connected for at least 14 seconds.
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Snapchat messages previously introduced by the prosecution revealed a sexually explicit conversation between Lee and Herrington where Herrington texted Lee around 5:25 a.m. to "come back."
The prosecutor also stated at 5:57 a.m., Herrington Google searched "how long does it take to strangle someone."
Horan stated seven seconds after the Google search, there was Instagram activity on Herrington's account. That activity ended six seconds later. Herrington searched for pre-workout boost testosterone.
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According to previous testimony, one of Lee's friends Khalid Fears had a FaceTime call with Lee around 5:58 a.m.
Snapchat messages introduced by the prosecution revealed Lee texted Herrington, "open," at 6:03 a.m.
Herrington then texted a customer that he could drop her screws off at 7:59 a.m. on July 8. Herrington had notes referring to getting a haircut and dropping off clothes at the cleaners.
At 8:11 a.m., Herrington, who had a moving company with a business partner, had conversation with a customer. At 8:29 a.m., Herrington messaged the customer, "I'm pulling up now."
It wasn't until July 22, when officers arrested Herrington and executed a search warrant on Herrington's apartment.
"You can't tell this jury that not one strand of fiber was found in Mr. Herrington's apartment," Horan said.
"There was no bonnet, no robe, no slippers ... But it should also be said, Jay Lee went missing on July 8. We didn't execute that search warrant until July 22 which is 14 days later," Fortner said.
"I didn't ask you if you found a bonnet or a robe or slippers. I asked you did you find any fiber or any trace evidence of any of those items ever had been in those apartments or left in his apartment."
"No fibers of any kind," Fortner answered.
Herrington's indictment states the maximum penalty possible is life in prison or the death penalty. However, Lafayette County District Attorney Ben Creekmore told the Clarion Ledger the state is not seeking the death penalty. Hinds County Assistant District Attorney Gwen Agho was appointed as a special prosecutor to assist in the case.
Court was held on Saturday due to the jury being selected in Hattiesburg about 250 miles south of Oxford. Jurors were transported by bus to Lafayette County and sequestered for the proceedings. Herrington's defense team previously argued that a fair trial cannot be secured inside the county limits of Lafayette County. Court is set to resume Sunday, Dec. 8.