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Man Accused of Quadruple Murder Seeks Jury from Outside Lake County
TIPTONVILLE, TN – An attorney for Austin Robert Drummond, the man accused of the brutal murders of four family members in Lake County, announced Monday he will seek a change of venue for the upcoming trial. The move aims to ensure an impartial jury, given the intense public attention surrounding the case, which gripped rural Tennessee for a week as Drummond eluded authorities.
Drummond, appearing in court in orange jail attire and shackles, pleaded not guilty to charges including first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping, and various weapons offenses. This marks his first court appearance since a grand jury indicted him on November 10. Prosecutors have indicated their intent to pursue the death penalty if Drummond is convicted of first-degree murder.
During a brief hearing, defense attorney Bryan Huffman informed Circuit Court Judge Mark Hayes of his plan to file a motion for a change of venue. Such motions are typically filed in high-profile cases where extensive pretrial publicity might make it challenging to select an unbiased jury. The week-long manhunt for Drummond saw multiple individuals arrested for allegedly assisting him after the killings.
The charges stem from the July 29 shootings in Tiptonville, in rural northwest Tennessee. Drummond is accused of killing James M.
Wilson, 21, Adrianna Williams, 20, her brother Braydon Williams, 15, and their mother Cortney Rose, 38. The victims were the parents, uncle, and grandmother of an infant later found abandoned in a front yard approximately 40 miles from the crime scene.
Huffman stated that Drummond’s girlfriend is Rose’s sister.
An intense search for Drummond concluded on August 5 in Jackson, roughly 70 miles southeast of Tiptonville. Jackson Police Chief Thom Corley confirmed Drummond was apprehended unarmed in a vacant building, though several guns were recovered nearby. It remains unclear if these weapons were used in the killings.
At a September hearing, an FBI agent testified that cellphone data placed Drummond near a wooded area where the victims’ bodies were discovered, covered by tarpaulins. However, Huffman contended that no direct evidence presented at that hearing proved Drummond fired the fatal shots.
The Dyer County Sheriff’s Office reported that on the day of the shootings, officers responded to a call about an infant left in a car seat at a “random individual’s front yard.” Shortly thereafter, investigators in neighboring Lake County confirmed the discovery of four gunshot victims in Tiptonville.
Dyer County Sheriff Jeff Box assured reporters at the time of Drummond’s arrest that the infant was “safe, healthy, and being well taken care of.”
In addition to Drummond, five other individuals have been charged as accessories after the fact in connection with the case.
Drummond has a criminal history, including a prior conviction for robbing a convenience store and threatening jurors. He also faced charges for the attempted murder of a prison guard while incarcerated. District Attorney Danny Goodman noted that Drummond was out on bond at the time of the Tiptonville killings.
Tiptonville, a community of approximately 3,400 residents, is situated about 120 miles north of Memphis, close to the Mississippi River and the picturesque Reelfoot Lake. A trial date for Drummond has not yet been set.