Madison and Rankin County District Attorney Bubba Bramlett, Jr. announced that on June 24, 19-year-old Dawton Gage Whatley, 19 of Walls, Mississippi, pled guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Lemetrius Hollins.

On February 5, 2024, officers with the Madison County Sheriff’s Department were dispatched to 101 Haley Creek in Madison for a welfare check.

Deputies had received information out of Washington County, Mississippi that Dawton Whatley was in custody on unrelated charges in their jurisdiction and claimed he had shot Hollins a few days earlier.
Once officers arrived at the home, they found the body of Hollins inside. It appeared he had been shot days earlier.

Investigators traveled to Washington County and transported Whatley back to the Sheriff’s Department. After several conversations with the suspect, Whatley was charged with murder.

It appeared the two men knew each other because Hollins had acted as a guardian and mentor to Whatley in his teen years and Whatley had been living with Hollins prior to the murder.

The exact motive remains unclear although Whatley did admit to shooting Hollins one time on February 3.

Whatley was indicted on June 7, 2024 and pled guilty June 24. Sentencing will be June 16.

District Attorney Bramlett stated, “We appreciate the work that both the Madison and Washington County Sheriff’s Departments did on this case. Madison County investigators quickly appreciated the seriousness of the tip and started a full-scale investigation. They were able to track the suspect from the home in Madison County to Washington County through multiple sources. The strength of the investigation is what made such a quick case turnaround possible and what ultimately led to Mr. Whatley pleading guilty three weeks after his indictment. We hope the family of Mr. Hollins can begin to get closure now that the criminal case is over.”