A 19-year-old Mississippian has pled guilty to a February murder in Madison County.
Dawton Gage Whatley, of Walls, pled guilty to second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Lemetrius Hollins. According to the Madison and Rankin County District Attorney’s Office, on February 5, Madison police responded to a call on Haley Creek Drive for a welfare check. Upon arrival, officers found the body of Hollins inside. Evidence pointed to Hollins being shot days before he was discovered.
Deputies had received information from Washington County that Dawton Whatley was in custody there on unrelated charges and had claimed he had shot Hollins a few days prior. Investigators traveled to Washington County and transported Whatley back to the Madison County Sheriff’s Department where Whatley was charged with murder.
Based on the investigation, the two men knew each other as Hollins had served as a guardian and mentor to Whatley in his earlier years. The teen had also been living with Hollins prior to the murder. Investigators say the motive is unclear, although Whatley did admit to shooting Hollins.
Whatley was indicted on June 7, pled guilty on June 24, and will be sentenced on July 16.
