Judge denies motion to seal case against man accused of killing Ole Miss student Jay Lee

OXFORD — A circuit court judge has denied the prosecutors and defense attorneys’ motion to seal court documents in the case against Sheldon “Timothy” Herrington Jr., who was indicted on a capital murder charge for the death of Jimmie “Jay” Lee .

Lafayette County District Attorney Ben Creekmore and Herrington’s defense attorney Kevin Horan filed a joint motion on July 15 for the case to be sealed due to pretrial publicity stating that sealing the case file is the “only measure that would protect the defendant from substantial probably fair trial prejudice.”

The filing states that the only way Herrington would secure the right to a fair trial would be if a judge agrees to seal pretrial fillings of docket entries, motions, exhibits, subpoenas and notices.

On Thursday, Lafayette County Circuit Court Judge Kelly Luther partially disagreed with the attorneys’ request. Luther denied the motion to seal the case in its entirety, but stated inside the Lafayette County Circuit Courthouse courtroom that he would make a ruling on “any particular items” attorneys believed would prevent a fair trial.

Luther said he will rule on an “item-by-item basis” for any future filings that would “adversely affect” the case.

Herrington was not present in the courtroom for the Thursday hearing. A Wednesday court filing shows Herrington waived his right to appear.

Luther also made a ruling Monday on a previous motion filed in June by attorney Horan, who requested a change of venue for Herrington's trial, which was scheduled for October.

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Horan requested that the trial be moved out of Lafayette County, where the university is located and where Lee disappeared on July 8, 2022.

According to June 3 court documents, Horan said there has been "extensive news coverage of the alleged facts" in this case, believing things will "potentially worsen" as the case moves forward. Horan also mentioned social media posts with “negative and false information about Herrington, and positive information and support of Jay Lee."

According to The Oxford Eagle, Luther granted the motion stating the trial will still be held in Lafayette County, but the jury will be selected from another county which has not yet been determined. The Oxford Eagle reported Luther instructed the court to reach out to other court districts to arrange for jury selection from their jury pool.

Luther ruled to change the trial date to Dec. 2.

According to previous Clarion Ledger reporting, Lee was last seen around 6 a.m. on July 8, 2022, when the 20-year-old left his apartment at Campus Walk Apartments in Oxford. Lee drove away in a 2014 black Ford Fusion with a custom "JAYLEE1" license plate and has not been heard from since. The vehicle was later recovered at another apartment complex, but Lee's body still has not been found.

Lee was a well-known member of the Oxford LGBTQ+ community as well as in Lee's hometown of Jackson, according to previous reports . Lee was also known for posting makeup tutorials and personal life updates on TikTok and other social media outlets.

On July 22, 2022, authorities arrested Herrington and charged him with Lee’s murder.

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Herrington later filed a lawsuit in October 2022 through his attorney, Horan, claiming he had been illegally jailed , that the court had no direct evidence to implicate him in Lee’s murder and that detectives made the arrest after tracking Lee and Herrington’s movements through social networking applications and surveillance footage, according to previous Clarion Ledger reporting.

Clarion Ledger reporting shows Herrington Jr. was released on a $250,000 bond in early December 2022, but Herrington was later indicted in March 2023 by a Lafayette County Grand Jury on a capital murder charge in Lee's death.

If convicted, Herrington could face the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Judge denies motion to seal case against man accused of killing Ole Miss student Jay Lee