On a mid-morning in Batesville, Mississippi, 31-year-old Keenan Draper, a Black male, pulled his car up to the entrance of the Corner Store at the intersection of Vance and Pearson Streets on December 7, 2023. Leaving his vehicle running, he went inside for what was likely intended to be a quick stop. Shortly after he entered the store, another individual followed him inside and opened fire, shooting Draper multiple times.
He succumbed to his injuries at the scene.
The Batesville Police Department quickly launched an investigation that led to the identification and arrest of three individuals in connection with the fatal shooting. Jamari Tyrice Barnes, a 19-year-old from Tunica, was taken into custody and charged with murder. Two other young men from Batesville, 20-year-old Jaylon Davion Ausborn and 19-year-old Jamaras Marshawn Jefferson, were also arrested and charged with accessory after the fact. Authorities stated that Ausborn and Jefferson were in the vehicle with Barnes and fled the scene with him after the shooting. Investigators believe the homicide was a targeted attack.
The death of Keenan Draper was a profound tragedy for his family, compounded by the fact that his brother, 21-year-old Calvin White, had been killed in a similar shooting just a month earlier on November 11 on Vance Street. The suspect in White's murder was arrested and charged on the day of the incident and was reportedly out on bond at the time of Draper's death. The area around the Corner Store had been a point of concern for city officials, who had been working to address the high crime rate on Van Voris and Pearson Streets.
