West Point police hold press conference for murder investigation

WEST POINT Miss. (WCBI) – West Point police have made a total of seven arrests in an ongoing investigation into the death of 22-year-old Jerni White.

Jaylon Heard, Renaldo Carrothers, Lamarquez Evans, Terrance Rowe, Shaunmicah Strong, and Kevin Holliday Jr. have all been charged with murder.

Jaquerius Crawford was charged with aggravated assault.

Today, the West Point police department held a press conference to update the public on the investigation.

West Point police have been working non-stop since late September to find the people responsible for the shooting death of Jerni White and to bring justice to his family.

The West Point community is also supporting the family and has been providing information that has helped police get these seven suspects into custody.

Just before midnight on September 25, gunshots rang out at the Timberlane Apartments in West Point.

Three people were injured. One of them, 22-year-old Jerni White died.

Since then seven people have been arrested, suspected of involvement in that fatal shooting.

Lieutenant Detective Ramirez Ivy said that the community has played a big role in their investigation.

“That is an example of the gap between the community and law enforcement. That lets me know they trust us to go out and do the job and this case is an example that we went out and did that job,” said Ivy.

Ivy said after the arrest of the first suspect, Jaylon Heard, they were able to get more leads.

He said what they learned helped them make six more arrests.

“The information we received just cooperated with the information we collected on the scene and just other things that came into play,” said Ivy.

Investigators are still trying to establish a motive for the shooting.

Ivy said the incident could have been handled differently, and the outcome should never have come to this.

“Rather than resulting in violence, it could have been very very different. You know I can say that it was not worth losing a life over. It’s never worth losing a life over,” said Ivy.

Assistant District Attorney Trina Davidson Brooks said White was well-known and well-liked in the community.

She said that the D.A.’s office and police won’t stop until justice is served.

“What we can do for right now is investigate the case we can hold the people we know accountable for taking his life and take them to court, and get a conviction, and get justice for “Shug”. Hopefully that will help in the healing process in knowing the person who actually took “Shug’s ” life will be held responsible for that,” said Davidson-Brooks.

Davidson-Brooks says these are just the first steps in the family’s healing process.

The investigation is still open. If you have information call West Point Police at  (662) 494-1244 or Crime Stoppers at (662) 494-0109.

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