John Henry Wells, 45, entered a guilty plea Friday for two counts of first-degree murder and one count of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. The charges stemmed from Dec. 14, 2020, when Wells murdered his parents, James and Rebecca Wells, by shooting them several times in their home around 4:30 p.m. in Foxworth. Wells then fired at Marion County Sheriff's deputies, who responded to the scene, prior to suffering, but surviving, a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the face before being taken into custody.
First-degree murder carries a sentence of life in prison in the state of Mississippi, and aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer carries a maximum of 30 years. Fifteenth Circuit Court Judge Claiborne "Buddy" McDonald sentenced Wells to two life sentences to run concurrently and 20 years for the aggravated assault charge to run consecutive to the life sentences.
Before accepting the plea, McDonald asked Wells a set of questions to be sure that Wells understood his actions in court Friday. Wells answered all questions with clarity. McDonald ensured that Wells knew he was not beholden to the sentence recommendation. He also checked with all attorneys to be sure the victims' family members were satisfied with the sentencing recommendation.
The proffer, or evidence, was given by Prosecutor Laurel Brinkley. She outlined the events of Dec. 14 in detail, including the specific wounds inflicted on Wells' parents, text messages and threats made to Wells' brother, Mitchell, and the exchange of gunfire with deputies. Brinkley said that Wells sent photos of his dead parents to Mitchell stating that, "This is what you've got coming," and Mitchell then called the police. Deputies Delando Watts and Andrew Reid then did a safety check and saw Wells with a firearm. They told Wells to drop the weapon, and Wells shot at deputies. Wells then shot at Capt. Pete Williams with malicious and deliberate intent to cause harm. Wells was shot in the leg by deputies and then shot himself.
Both the prosecution and the attorneys for Wells, Pam Castle and Shirlee Baldwin, waived the pre-sentencing report.
Three charges were dropped in the plea agreement, which were two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and one count of possession of a controlled substance.
"This case involved a man shooting his mother and father to death," District Attorney Hal Kittrell said. "I cannot imagine the depth of evil associated with such a horrendous act. I further cannot imagine the pain these murders have caused his family. With the life sentences plus 20 years, he will have plenty of time to think about what he has done.
"I want to commend the Marion County Sheriff's Office and the deputies who were directly involved in the apprehension and arrest of Mr. Wells," he said. "These officers were met with gunfire when they arrived on scene to apprehend Mr. Wells. It proves once again that each and every day our law officers put themselves in harm's way to protect our community and for that we should all be grateful. I am."
