Taylor found guilty of attempted murder of Jefferson Davis deputy

PRENTISS, Miss. (WDAM) - A jury found 42-year-old Timothy Dewayne Taylor, of Prentiss, guilty of one count of attempted murder of a police officer and two counts of possession of a controlled substance - methamphetamine and cocaine - on Friday, Sept. 9.

Upon the jury’s verdict, Circuit Court Judge Prentiss Harrell sentenced Taylor to serve 26 years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

Hal Kittrell, the 15th Circuit Court District Attorney, thanked the jury for delivering a just verdict.

“We were able to take a violent individual off the streets and show that there are severe consequences for those who do harm to others in Jefferson Davis County,” Kittrell said.

The trial was in connection to the May 3, 2019, shooting of Jefferson Davis County Sheriff’s Deputy Patrick Barnes, which occurred at a trailer near State Route 42 and Duckworth Trail.

Barnes responded to a 911 call at the residence around 9 p.m. that evening. The sheriff’s department said that Taylor reportedly told Barnes “he wasn’t going to jail” before opening fire and hitting the deputy in the leg.

Following the shooting, officers from multiple agencies, including the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, surrounded the trailer, and a standoff began.

The sheriff’s department said early in the standoff that Taylor opened the front door and shot at the surrounding officers, and he shot at officers again when a SWAT team entered the trailer.

The standoff ended after Taylor eventually surrendered and officers took him into custody.

Barnes received treatment for his injuries at a local hospital and was later released. No further injuries were reported.

According to early reports, Taylor initially faced charges of attempted murder of a police officer, aggravated assault of a police officer, three felony drug charges while in possession of a firearm and possession of drug paraphernalia.

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