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Thread: Dustin Gray and Austin Brookshire Sentenced in 2020 MS Murder of Willie Jones

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    Dustin Gray and Austin Brookshire Sentenced in 2020 MS Murder of Willie Jones

    5FC7542E-AAF5-4DA2-A567-4F60A4FFD984.jpg
    Willie Jones

    B24D9D7E-ED06-4D70-8070-2796E77B2EFE.jpeg
    Dustin Gray

    F4021003-1F57-49A8-96BB-67AFBE5C0D9D.jpeg
    Austin Brookshire


    November 24, 2020

    Bond denied for Pearl River Co. man accused of capital murder


    POPLARVILLE, Miss. (WLOX) - A Pearl River County man accused of capital murder will stay behind bars, despite telling a judge this week that he fears for his safety.

    Dustin Gray appeared before Judge Prentiss Harrell on Monday for a bond reduction hearing. The judge heard arguments from both Gray and the prosecution on whether the bond should be reduced for the capital murder suspect or not.

    The judge ultimately ended up ruling against Gray, siding with the prosecution against a bond reduction.

    Gray and his 18-year-old brother Austin Brookshire are accused of robbing and murdering 28-year-old Willie Jones in July. Investigators say sometime during an eight-hour window on July 6-7, Dustin Gray and Brookshire shot Jones multiple times in the chest.

    In a motion filed earlier this month, Gray said he has concerns for his safety after recently being transferred from Marion Walthall Correctional Facility to the Pearl River County Jail. Since arriving in Pearl River County, Gray said he has been held in solitary confinement with minimal contact with the environment and other people.

    He also claimed that his calls and commissary privileges have been limited as is typically seen in prisoners who have already been convicted of a crime.

    The isolation is having a significant and substantial negative impact upon his mental and physical condition, states Gray’s motion to the court. The document goes on to say that Gray’s treatment amounts to “cruel and unusual punishment” and amounts to punishment rather than just holding while awaiting trial.

    In asking the court for a bond reduction, the motion also notes that Gray has lived his entire life in Pearl River County and is not a flight risk, and that bail should be granted because the proof that he is guilty is not evidence.

    “Since this defendant is facing a potential death sentence, or life in prison, when he is convicted, he would likely flee the jurisdiction as he has done once before,” states the prosecution in its answer to Gray’s original motion.

    The State of Mississippi successfully argued to the court on Monday that Gray is seen as a flight risk, reminding the judge that Gray and his wife Erica left the state after the murder of Willie Jones. The couple were apprehended in
    Colorado and later extradited back to Mississippi to face charges connected to Jones’ murder.

    Gray made that request despite a signed affidavit he reportedly gave the investigators that admitted to robbing and killing Jones, then led authorities to where Jones was buried.

    Prosecutors also disputed Gray’s motion that there is not enough proof of his guilt, saying both Gray and his co-conspirator Austin Brookshier confessed to murdering Jones and stealing a large sum of money from him.

    Prosecutors went on to point out what they say is a wealth of physical evidence against Gray, namely that the victim’s blood was found in the defendant’s vehicle, as well as projectiles and ammunition matching the bullets used to kill Jones.

    “Simply put, the proof is overwhelming and the presumption great that this defendant is guilty of capital murder,” wrote the prosecution.

    Brookshire is also charged with capital murder in the death of Willie Jones, whose body was found in Hancock County two weeks after he went missing.

    Dustin Gray’s wife Erica and an unnamed teen are also charged with accessory after the fact in the capital murder case.

    https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.wlo...outputType=amp
    Last edited by Helen; 02-24-2021 at 12:47 AM. Reason: moved date and spacing
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    Man sentenced to life for Picayune man’s murder

    By WLOX Staff

    PEARL RIVER COUNTY, Miss. (WLOX) - A Rankin County man found guilty of murdering a Picayune man was sentenced to life in prison this week.

    Back in May, a jury found Austin Brookshire, 21, guilty of murdering Willie “Chill” Jones in the early morning hours of July 6, 2020.

    That same day, the Jones was reported missing, and Picayune Police began their investigation. They learned that Jones was in Pearl River County, and the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department took over the investigation.

    The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys John Dowdy and Christina Holcomb.

    “I would like to thank the Pearl River County Sheriff’s department and the Picayune Police Department for their hard work that led to this defendant being brought to justice,” District Attorney Hal Kittrell said.

    Dustin Gray’s trial is set for August.

    https://www.wlox.com/2023/07/26/man-...e-mans-murder/
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    Second suspect in Picayune man’s death convicted of capital murder

    By WXXV 25 News Staff

    A Picayune man was convicted Thursday of capital murder in the 2020 death of a Willie R. Jones.

    27-year-old Dustin Gray’s trial was this week. His half-brother, 21-year-old Austin Brookshire, was found guilty of first degree murder in May. He was sentenced to life in prison.

    Gray and Brookshire planned to rob Jones of money he had stowed in a box. The pair shot Jones in the back seat of Gray’s car in Pearl River County, then dumped the body on Texas Flat Road in Hancock County.

    Jones was reported missing July 6, 2020. His body was was found 11 days later. Pearl River County Coroner Derek Turnage said Jones died of multiple gunshot wounds to the chest.

    After the murder, Gray tried to clean the car, but employees at a car wash refused after seeing the blood. His wife, Erica, charged as an accessory after the fact, allegedly tried to clean the car. The couple then fled to Pueblo, Colorado, where they were arrested and extradited back to Mississippi. A juvenile also was charged as accessory after the fact.

    Gray’s father, attorney Jim Gray, turned his son’s vehicle over to police after finding blood in the car. According to reports from the Sun Herald, Gray received threats and his law office burned down as his son was on the run.

    Dustin Gray has yet to be sentenced. He was also charged as a murder suspect and two others, his wife Erica Gray, and a juvenile were accused of accessory after the fact of murder.

    https://www.wxxv25.com/second-suspec...apital-murder/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Edited:

    Pearl River Co. man sentenced to life in prison for 2020 murder

    By WLOX Staff

    PEARL RIVER COUNTY, Miss. (WLOX) - Monday afternoon, a Pearl River County man was sentenced for the 2020 capital murder of Willie "Chill" Jones.

    Dustin Gray and his brother Austin Brookshire were accused of robbing and murdering the 28-year-old. Now, Gray is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

    Brookshire was previously sentenced to life in prison July 24, 2023.

    https://www.wlox.com/2023/10/03/pear...n-2020-murder/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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