‘All talk:’ Judge grants release of woman charged in Lexington murder plot
A woman charged in connection to a murder for hire plot that killed a federal witness in fall 2023 has been granted release from custody by a federal judge until her case goes to trial.
Casey Morris, 29, was federally indicted in November 2025 on charges of using interstate commerce in commission of murder-for-hire, conspiracy to use interstate commerce in commission for murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to use a firearm in a crime of violence. She faces a maximum sentence of the death penalty or life in prison.
Morris is the girlfriend of one of eight members of the Hot Boyz, a Lexington gang, charged in the September 2023 shooting death of Kristopher Lewis.
William Quejohn Dixon, 28, Rollie Deshawn Lamar, 32, Daquis Damarr Sharp, 27, Desmond Elijah Bellomy, 26, and Jatiece Alvin Parks, 21, ad DeAngelo Montavius Boone, 26, were indicted in October in the September 2023 killing.
Federal prosecutors thought Morris’s ties, and alleged obstruction towards investigators, would be enough to hold her in detention pending trial.
But federal magistrate judge Matthew Stinnett thought otherwise, calling prosecutor’s evidence “more smoke and innuendo than it is fire.”
‘Targeted assassination’ of federal witness
One year before he was killed, Lewis, 28, was indicted alongside a man named Rollie Lamar on charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana and money laundering.
Lewis was going to testify at Lamar’s trial, court documents show. But he was gunned down first.
At the time of his arrest, Lamar had more than $2 million in assets, including luxury cars, high-end jewelry and guns, prosecutors say.
And in 2023, police allege, he used $1,000 of those funds to order a hit on Lewis. The four men involved were to receive $250 apiece.
Lamar was convicted anyway in a February 2024 trial and sentenced to 18 years in prison, according to online court records.
Judge: Defendant a ‘braggart’ and ‘all talk’
Morris was originally released under the conditions that she would remain on home monitoring with a third-party custodian, her brother-in-law, who works for the Richmond Police Department.
However, a new detention hearing was ordered when it was discovered Richmond police policies would not allow an officer to live with a person under indictment.
Prosecutors jumped on the new hearing to make their case as to why Morris should be held in jail, including evidence that Morris helped her boyfriend, Bellomy, to surveil Lewis for days leading up to his death.
“Morris’s history contains multiple red flags for release, including her history of obstructive conduct and her continued contact with gang members and drug dealers, including but not limited to Bellomy,” prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said Morris allowed Bellomy and other “would-be assassins” to use her car for days worth of surveillance of Lewis, which helped the suspects determine his routine.
The two exchanged texts back and forth that showed Morris knew about the Hot Boyz plans to murder Lewis, and after the fact, attempted to help cover up evidence, according to prosecutors.
However, Stinnett said Morris’s role in the conspiracy, if any, was exceedingly minor.
Stinnet said the text messages imply Morris may have known of the murder plot and that she may have regretted allowing her car to be used.
The judge said in all likelihood, it appeared Morris is a “braggart,” who is “all talk, and little action.”
That aside, Stinnett noted Morris has no criminal history, strong family ties and no history of violence.
With conditions in place, requiring Morris to live with her mother, Stinnett said he can “adequately mitigate” the risks of obstruction.
Federal prosecutors strongly disagreed.
“Morris’s release not only endangers society and this prosecution, her release establishes a precedent that someone can aid gang activity, participate in a heinous crime, lie to police, destroy evidence, and otherwise collude with co-conspirators and not be considered a danger by clear and convincing evidence,” prosecutors objected.
