MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Over the weekend, jurors heard more testimony in the Timothy Herrington Jr. trial in Oxford, Mississippi.
Saturday marked the fifth day of testimony in the highly-anticipated capital murder case involving missing University of Mississippi student Jimmy “Jay” Lee.
The prosecution presented never-before-seen evidence in a trial that’s attracted local and national attention, drawing a sharper focus on its capital murder case.
Saturday afternoon, Rachel Carver, a forensic expert formerly with the Oxford Police showed jurors a number of items taken as evidence from the defendant’s apartment.
That included the gray hoodie the prosecution said Herrington was seen wearing the morning of July 8, 2022, when running from Molly Barr Trail Apartments where Jay Lee’s car was found.
Other evidence included a roll of duct tape Herrington allegedly purchased at the Oxford Walmart that same day, rubber gloves, trash bags, a number of used condoms and an acrylic fingernail.
Carver also presented pictures of Herrington’s Ford Escape, particularly the interior of the white truck Herrington was allegedly driving on July 8, 2022.
Jurors were also shown photos of the Grenada home of Herrington’s parents where investigators seized bedding, clothing, shovels and a wheelbarrow.
The evidence was collected more than two weeks after Jay Lee was reported missing. The defense quickly questioned how that length of time could have corrupted the evidence.
“14 days is a long period of time if it’s been open to the access of people, time, temperature, manipulation of you cleaning up,” Carver said. “I don’t know if those things happened but in 14 day period, yes.”
Police said Herrington admitted to having sex with Lee on July 8 at his apartment.
“We don’t have any DNA evidence from Jay Lee in that apartment,” said former Oxford Police Department Lieutenant Shane Fortner. “But Mr. Horan showed me some Instagram messages and we’ve read some of them out and one of them was, ‘I [expletive] on your floor, you should probably clean that up.’ That was on July 8.”
Earlier on Saturday, Herrington’s attorney moved for a mistrial but the motion was denied.
Court is scheduled to resume on Sunday with jurors possibly driven by bus to various locations crucial to the investigation.
Testimony will resume in the afternoon.