Last week in Stokes County Superior Court, two defendants were sentenced on murder charges by Judge Angela Puckett. Leroy Allen Hoover of Westfield was sentenced to 317-393 months in connection to the murder of Sarah Hill, who was reported missing in 2018. The initial report for her disappearance was made in Surry County, but the investigation led to Stokes County, where in October of 2022 the Stokes County Sheriff’s Office, with the assistance of the Surry County Sheriff’s Office and the NC State Bureau of Investigation, executed a search warrant at Hoover’s residence in Westfield, where human remains were located. Those remains were later positively identified to be those of Sarah Hill, and Hoover was subsequently charged with her murder.

Henry Albert Jones was sentenced to 276-344 months in connection to the murder of Lesa Joyce. Ms. Joyce was found deceased at their shared residence in Germanton in 2021. Through the investigation, and consultation with Chief Assistant District Attorney Quentin Harris, Jones was charged with her murder.

Additionally, Jamie Levan Hairston of Walnut Cove was sentenced to 108-154 months for various drug charges from 2023, and Nathan Daniel Jones of Walnut Cove was sentenced to 75-102 months for Assault by strangulation and Breaking and Entering from a 2024 case.

“The courthouse belongs to the people, and I wanted to take the opportunity to share what has been going on with some of the cases that we have investigated. I am proud of the work that our deputies and detectives do on a daily basis, the collaboration with the District Attorney’s Office, and am grateful for our judges who hold defendants accountable.” (Sheriff Lemons)