Photo: Oxford Police Department
A Mississippi man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for killing Jimmie “Jay” Lee, an openly gay University of Mississippi student who disappeared in 2022.
Sheldon “Timothy” Herrington Jr., 25, was sentenced on Dec. 2, 2025, after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and tampering with evidence, according to multiple outlets.
Lee was 20 years old when he went missing on July 8, 2022. Investigators later determined he had been in contact with Herrington shortly before his disappearance. Prosecutors said evidence recovered during the investigation included sexually explicit messages exchanged between the two, as well as online searches on Herrington’s device related to strangulation, the Associated Press reported, per People.
Authorities said Lee’s final text message appeared to have been sent from near Herrington’s apartment in Oxford, Mississippi. Lee’s vehicle was later found abandoned, and surveillance footage showed him leaving the area the morning he disappeared.
Herrington was initially charged with capital murder, but his first trial ended in a mistrial in December 2024 after jurors were unable to reach a verdict. His defense argued the case could not be proven without Lee’s body.
In February 2025, Lee’s remains were discovered in Carroll County, about 90 minutes from his home. Due to the condition of the remains, the county coroner said the cause of death could not be determined.
Herrington was later indicted again and scheduled for retrial before entering a guilty plea last year. Prosecutors said they believed Lee was killed to conceal the nature of the relationship. Herrington’s attorney said his client did not provide a motive for the killing and maintained his innocence prior to the plea.
During sentencing, Lee’s father addressed the court, describing the impact of the loss on his family. Special prosecutor Gwen Agho said the killing stemmed from an effort to hide the relationship.
“All of this happened to cover something up,” Agho said, per the AP.
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