A birthday party at the Oasis Club in Brookhaven, Mississippi, turned deadly in the early hours of November 24, 2017. Billy Ray Thomas Jr., 23, was shot as he was leaving a private party around 12:15 a.m. He was taken to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, where he later died. Six other people were injured in the same incident.

Police identified Justin Anderson as a suspect and sought him on charges that included murder and eight counts of aggravated assault. Anderson later surrendered with his lawyer and mother and faced trial in May 2019. After a three-day trial, a Lincoln County jury acquitted Justin Devon Anderson of all charges; jurors deliberated for less than an hour. The defense highlighted conflicting witness statements and a chaotic scene with reports of multiple shooters, and the state did not recover the firearm or the bullets that struck Thomas.

The acquittal left Thomas’s family and parts of the community dissatisfied. If anyone knew Billy Ray Thomas Jr., was at the Oasis Club that night, or has information about the shooting, please come forward.