Miss. man shot to death as he arrived at courthouse

CANTON, Miss.— A man was shot to death on Monday in front of a courthouse in a suburb of Jackson, Mississippi, as he arrived for a hearing on drug charges against him, and the gunman turned himself in to the authorities, police said.

Kendrick Brown was shot at point-blank range outside the Madison County Courthouse complex in Canton, about 30 miles north of Jackson, the state capital, authorities and Brown family members said.

The shooter, William Wells, 24, walked up to Brown in front of the courthouse, shot him in the chest with a handgun, laid down his weapon and turned himself in, Madison County Sheriff Randy Tucker said.

Brown died of a single shot to his chest, according to the Madison County Coroner's office. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:05 a.m.

Canton police declined to speculate on a motive for the killing, but said they were investigating whether it was linked to a shooting over the weekend in which Wells' mother was wounded. She is recovering from her injuries, police said, without elaborating on the incident.

According to a Feb. 10 indictment, Brown faced drug charges for selling cocaine and conspiracy to sell cocaine. He was on the court schedule on Monday for a hearing, and his trial was set for later this month.