In the late summer of 2020, the quiet of a Pine Bluff, Arkansas neighborhood was shattered by violence that claimed the life of a 69-year-old man. On the afternoon of Thursday, September 3, 2020, police responded to reports of a shooting on Lilac Street. Upon their arrival, they discovered the body of Horace Harrington outside of a residence. He had sustained gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene by the coroner.
In the immediate aftermath, law enforcement had no leads on a suspect or a motive for what they determined to be the city's 19th homicide of the year.
The investigation into Harrington's death continued, and within a week, a breakthrough was made. Authorities arrested 18-year-old Vernon Lee Mccraney III in connection with the fatal shooting. Mccraney was formally accused of the murder of Horace Harrington, bringing a suspect into custody and moving the case into the judicial system. The arrest marked a significant development in a case that initially left the community seeking answers.
