On December 23, 2014, the body of 21-year-old William Frederic Whitsett of Spruce Pine, North Carolina, was discovered by utility workers at a construction site in the Georgetown area of Savannah, Georgia. An autopsy later confirmed that Whitsett had been killed by gunfire. The ensuing investigation by the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department would unravel a plot connected to the drug trade.
A three-week investigation led to the arrests of three individuals in connection with Whitsett's death. Kevin Da Palmer, 23, and his girlfriend, Genevieve Elizabeth Meeks, 20, both of Savannah, were the first to be taken into custody. Shortly after, a Fort Stewart soldier, 22-year-old Army Specialist Bradley Bates, turned himself in to authorities. All three were initially charged with murder, malice murder, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Palmer and Meeks also faced charges of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of tools for the commission of a crime.
Prosecutors alleged that Kevin Palmer, aspiring to become a 'kingpin' in the drug trade, orchestrated Whitsett's murder. The victim had reportedly come to Savannah with the intention of establishing a marijuana trafficking hub. The plan allegedly involved luring Whitsett to the apartment of Bradley Bates, who was Palmer's neighbor, where he was then shot with a. 22-caliber pistol.
Ultimately, a jury convicted Kevin Palmer of felony murder and other related charges, although he was acquitted on the count of malice murder. The murder charges against Genevieve Elizabeth Meeks and Bradley Bates were eventually dismissed. Meeks pleaded guilty to drug charges. Bates, a military police officer at the time of the incident, was sentenced to time served for lying to a detective during the investigation. He also faced charges of tampering with evidence and conspiracy to distribute marijuana, but was acquitted of those charges due to insufficient evidence.
