The jury finds Cortez Hairston Jr. guilty of 2021 murder

A Christian County Circuit Court jury took just over two hours Friday to find Cortez Hairston Jr. guilty of murder.

The jury then recommended a 30-year sentence for the Hopkinsville man accused of shooting Adrian Acree multiple times in the middle of Sharp Street in October 2021.

The week-long trial began Monday and was the second in the past three months. A trial in August ended in a mistrial on the second day after a tantrum erupted in the gallery and the defense felt it may have tainted the jury.

Thursday's testimony focused on Jaila Sherrod, who, along with Dekorian Daniel, was accused of helping to plan the murder.

Defense attorney Rob Eggert argued that Sherrod and Daniel were the main players in Acree's death.

Sherrod previously pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting murder and tampering with evidence, with special prosecutor Zac Greenwell recommending a five-year prison sentence for each charge, for a total of 10 years.

However, Eggert said Sherrod will apply for probation and get off without prison time because she agreed to testify against Hairston, giving her a reason to lie to investigators and the jury about her involvement.

Sherrod also testified that Daniel owed Acree $3,400 from a drug deal, with Eggert telling jurors that Daniel was a motive for the murder and not his client.

In his closing argument, Eggert said police had no telephone evidence and no DNA evidence linking Hairston to the murder.

However, Greenwell argued that Acree accused Hairston of leaking information about him to the police and recruited Sherrod and Daniel to help with the murder. Police evidence showed that Sherrod had friended Acree on social media and listed him as “Fat Rat” in her contacts.

Greenwell said it was Sherrod who drove Acree to the location where he would be shot multiple times. Police said they recovered 21 shell casings from a 9mm handgun at the scene, with Greenwell calling it a “state crime” rather than a robbery because Acree had cash on him at the time of his death.

Sherrod has not yet been convicted on her charges, while Daniel is charged with complicity in murder and his case is still pending in District Court.

Hairston is scheduled to be formally sentenced on January 2nd.