Sheriff: Man fatally shoots defendant waiting outside Mississippi courthouse

CANTON, Miss. – A man fatally shot a defendant waiting outside a Mississippi courthouse on Monday morning, and a suspect is in custody, the sheriff said.

Madison County Sheriff Randy Tucker declined to identify either man.

Tucker and Madison County District Attorney Michael Guest said they do not know the motive for the shooting.

The suspect fired one shot with a semiautomatic handgun, Tucker said, and the man was hit in the chest and died at the scene.

The suspect laid down the handgun and was arrested without a struggle, Tucker said.

District Attorney Michael Guest said the victim had been expected to appear for a status conference on a case for which he’d been indicted on drug charges. Prosecutors expected that the victim would reject a plea offer and the judge would set the case for trial, Guest said.