First DeSoto County homicide of 2016 tied to custody dispute

A dispute over child custody apparently led to DeSoto County's first homicide of the year.

Lt. Chris Shaver of the DeSoto County Sheriff's Department says "domestic ties" were identified between the victim, identified Tuesday morning as Shareca Fair, and Bobby Adams, the suspect in Fair's Monday shooting death.

Family members told media outlets Adams was the father of Fair's child and was fighting her over custody.

Adams, 54, who was arrested after the shooting about 5:15 p.m. Monday and charged with murder, made his initial court appearance Tuesday morning. He is being held in the DeSoto County Jail in Hernando without bond.

Police say Fair was shot multiple times during a dispute at a home in the 600 block of Geneva Berry Street in the eastern part of the county.

In contrast to Memphis and Shelby County, which has recorded a record 222 homicides so far in 2016, DeSoto County typically has few per year. Sheriff Bill Rasco said Tuesday the county has had no more than two or three in any recent year. Almost all are domestic situations, he said.

"I'd like to think the reason we've been able to hold it down is just because we're out there doing our jobs," Rasco said.

While the homicide rate remains extremely low, the northern portion of the county closest to the Tennessee line has seen an uptick in other crimes. Increased commercial development in Southaven has brought added safety concerns and a bolstered police presence around retail areas such as the Tanger Outlets mall at Interstate 55 and Church Road. And in Olive Branch, a number of robberies and home invasions have been blamed on proximity to Memphis.

The county has also seen an increase in drug-related crimes — it has the unenviable ranking of No. 1 in Mississippi in heroin-related deaths with more than 20 this year. DeSoto County Coroner Jeff Pounders says the problem is worst in the northern half of the county, those areas closest to Memphis.