Fay Ann Noel, 58, was shot and killed during a family gathering on the night of May 24, 2014, on Queenie Johnson Road in Holmes County, near Lexington, Mississippi. Noel, who had worked about 25 years as a warden at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman, was struck in the chest around 11:40 p.m. after stepping into the doorway to investigate a disturbance.

Witnesses said the shooting followed an argument between Noel’s nephew, 25-year-old Kenneth Lee Williams, and Noel’s brother, Simmy Noel, which began after Simmy suggested Williams’s son needed medical attention. The disagreement moved outside, and Williams reportedly retrieved a 20-gauge shotgun from his vehicle. As Fay Ann and Simmy stepped outside after hearing a gunshot, Williams is said to have aimed the weapon at his aunt; Simmy attempted to intervene but Fay Ann was fatally shot and Williams fled.

Williams was later taken to a hospital by a relative for what appeared to be a drug overdose and was charged with murder. A Holmes County jury convicted him of first-degree murder in February 2020 and sentenced him to life without parole; appeals challenging hearsay and Fifth Amendment issues were unsuccessful and the conviction and sentence were affirmed. Did anyone who attended that gathering or knew the family notice tensions that night or have additional information about the events leading up to the shooting?