Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr., who has been accused of killing Jimmie “Jay” Lee, is claiming that he is being detained behind bars illegally in a lawsuit filed against the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department.
The 22-year-old was arrested on July 22 and was charged with first-degree murder in conjunction with the disappearance of Lee. During the August 9 court hearing, Lafayette County Circuit Judge Gray Tollison denied bond for Herrington.
Now, Herrington’s legal team is seeking his release on reasonable bail and a hearing on the charges against the Grenada native, arguing that a grand jury failed to indict Herrington for murder, much less any other crime in connection to Lee going missing.
According to the lawsuit, investigators tracked Lee and Herrington’s movements via social networking applications, and surveillance footage. They also utilized cadaver dogs to conduct an “open-air sniff” of Herrington’s apartment, but detectives were unable to confirm if the dogs were verified to detect human remains.
Furthermore, Herrington’s attorneys claim that there is no direct evidence to incriminate him of any crime given Lee’s body has yet to be found. The attorneys also claim that the case against Herrington is purely circumstantial.
