Ed’Lauryn Kimbreun Baylis was shot and killed at a residence on West 4th Avenue in Petal, Mississippi, on March 10, 2024. She was 21 and known to family and friends as LaLa. The shooting was reported as the city’s first murder in several years and profoundly affected the local community.

Authorities arrested 35-year-old Taebyus Amaud Smith of Monticello on the morning of the incident; he was booked into the Forrest County Jail on a murder charge and is identified as the victim’s brother. The motive has not been released. The Petal Police Department, assisted by the Forrest County Sheriff’s Office and the Hattiesburg Police Department Crime Scene Investigator, continued investigating the circumstances.

If anyone knew Ed’Lauryn or has information about what happened that morning, please come forward with tips for investigators.