On December 21, 2021, Melissa Lynn Hays-Mitchell, a 48-year-old White/Caucasian female, and her spouse, Leonard "Dean" Zimmerman, 53, were found deceased in their Fort Scott, Kansas, home. A family member discovered Melissa with gunshot wounds and called 911 at approximately 7:40 p.m. When Fort Scott police officers arrived at the residence at 402 Main St., they found both Melissa and Zimmerman had been fatally shot.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation was called in to assist with what was being investigated as a double homicide.
Investigators quickly identified Melissa's son, 23-year-old Dawson J. Mitchell, as a person of interest in the case. The KBI issued a public alert, warning that he was considered armed and dangerous. The following day, on December 22, 2021, Dawson Mitchell was located and taken into custody in Fort Scott. He was initially arrested on charges of theft of a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and unlawful possession of controlled substances.
In the days that followed, Dawson Mitchell was formally charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of his mother, Melissa Hays-Mitchell, and his stepfather, Leonard Zimmerman. The charges alleged that the killings were intentional and premeditated. Further investigation revealed that the firearm used in the homicides, a Walther 9mm handgun, had been stolen from Dawson's father, Jerald Mitchell.
In November 2023, Dawson James Mitchell pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder. In May 2024, a Bourbon County judge sentenced him to two consecutive life sentences for the murders of his mother and stepfather. While the legal proceedings have concluded, authorities have not publicly detailed a specific motive for the shootings.
