Stephanie Hatton, a 25-year-old woman from Kernersville, North Carolina, was found dead from a gunshot wound on July 18, 2021, in the Elkin community of Wilkes County. The Wilkes County Sheriff's Office responded to a shooting early Sunday morning and discovered Hatton's body. The suspect, Donald Ray Lassiter, a 36-year-old man from Elkin, was identified and later arrested in the Ronda community. Lassiter was charged with murder in connection to Hatton's death. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is assisting in the ongoing investigation. Authorities have not revealed a possible motive or whether Hatton and Lassiter knew each other. People close to Hatton described her as a kind soul who did not deserve such a tragic fate.
