Murdered: Doris Murray
A woman who won $5 million in the Georgia lottery a year ago has been found stabbed to death in her middle Georgia home, and her former boyfriend is charged with killing her.
Doris Murray, 42, was killed about 1:30 p.m. Monday in eastern Laurens County, Sheriff Bill Harrell said.
Derrick Lorenzo Stanley, 51, of East Dublin was being held without bond Wednesday in the county jail, charged with murder, Harrell said.
Stanley led police on a car chase through the cities of East Dublin and Dublin following a 911 call to Murray’s residence Monday. Harrell said members of Murray’s family called 911 saying they had seen Stanley leaving her modest block home with blood on his face. Much of the inside of the house was destroyed in a weekend fire.
Stanley wrecked his car and was carried to Fairview Park Hospital for treatment of his injuries.
Despite her lottery winnings in April 2007, Murray “lived by meager standards,” the sheriff said. He said he believes the fire in her home was accidental. She indicated that she planned to raze the house and build again.
Murray, a mother of four, posed for pictures holding a giant check for $5 million after winning the prize on her 41st birthday. She chose to take it in $172,000 payments, after taxes, every year for 20 years. Murray told lottery officials she planned to use the money to start a trust fund for her grandchildren, according to a Lottery news release issued at the time of her winning.
Lottery spokeswoman Tandi Reddick said Wednesday that the money will continued to be paid to whomever is in Murray’s will.
Sheriff’s investigator Sgt. Stan Wright said he believed Murray and Stanley may have argued over a break-up.
“Her family said they had been boyfriend and girlfriend for some time,” Wright said. “Then she told him she wanted to break it off and she wanted to be friends and that was it. From what they told me, he didn’t want to accept that.”
May 9, 2008 at 1:46 pm
I’m pretty sure there’s more to that story. Maybe he was the kind of guy that thought, “if I can’t have you then no one will” - but I’m sure that the money had something to do with it.
Think about it.
If you were an old man that had nothing going for yourself and you just so happened to be dating a woman that won the lottery - you’d be happy as hell that you were with her. But if for some reason, one day she tells you that she wants to be your friend and not your girlfriend, one million questions would start flowing through your head: Is there someone else? Will she still give me money? Will she still buy me things? What am I going to do now? etc.
This is a sad situation.
Now I know what Biggie meant when he said, “more money, more problems.”
May 9, 2008 at 3:53 pm
I wonder sometimes….what….the…..hell! This woman was just trying to live her life and was not even living the fast life because she won some major money. She was just maintaining and here this idiot man with his idiot mind, took her life for what??? She was a mother, daughter and he didnt even stop to think about anyone but himself. Many blessing to the family of this strong black woman.
May 11, 2008 at 10:07 am
This is really sad!! I think this guy needs life without parole, he only wanted to stay b/c of the money she had just inherited. If she were still the same person he met before the money, he MAY would’ve been mad, but not like this!! He went to the extreme and still didn’t get what he really was interested in…..THE MONEY!! **DUMB A**!!!!
May 20, 2008 at 2:01 pm
This is fucked up! That’s all I’m going to say! He needs to get his ass whooped in prison.
May 31, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Mo money, mo problems! I did the math, & that’s almost $15,000 a month. I do believe that would drive me crazy!