Tennessee serial killer who referred to himself as Michael Myers gets 261 years

A self-professed killer who confessed to three murders after being convicted of killing his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn baby in 2020 has been sentenced to 261 years in prison, West Tennessee prosecutors said.

Joshua Dotson, 25, pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, for the slayings of Divieon Parker, Renita Bennett and Reginald Anderson, according to Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, who released a statement Friday after a hearing in Shelby County Circuit Court.

Dotson, a Memphis local at the time of the killings, also pleaded guilty to three counts of felony reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon. A Shelby County judge then sentenced him to 159 years in prison for the three killings, which was added to his sentence from another conviction.

Renita Bennett and Regiald Anderson were fatally shot on May 24, 2020, the U.S. Marshals Office for the Western District of Tennessee previously reported.

Several months later, local WREG-TV reported, the Memphis Police Department said officers found Parker fatally shot at the South Memphis Market on Nov. 17, 2019. Parker was 18.

On June 12, 2020, Dotson fatally shot his 19-year-old former girlfriend, Jamesha Covson, and her unborn child at a home in southeast Memphis, local and federal law enforcement officials said.

In August 2024, Dotson was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder in their slayings, and in October 2024, a judge sentenced Dotson to 102 years in prison.

“We are confident that he will never be a threat to our community again,” Mulroy said in a statement.

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‘Likening himself to the fictional murderer Michael Myers’

Throughout his 2024 trial, “Dotson shocked the court by testifying in his own defense, referring to himself as a ‘serial killer’ and likening himself to the fictional murderer Michael Myers.”

“In court, he attempted to diminish” Covson’s memory, calling her a “sex worker” and “claiming she was aware of his previous murders, which he argued was his motive for killing her,” according to prosecutors.

Joshua Dotson sentenced to 261 years for 5 killings

His sentence Friday will run consecutive to his prior first-degree murder convictions of Covson and her unborn child, bringing his total sentence to 261 years for all five killings.

“After five years, we are pleased to finally have justice for Dotson’s multiple victims,” Assistant District Attorney Regina Lucreziano, who worked on the case, with Chief Prosecutor Lessie Rainey, said in a statement. “While no amount of time in prison will bring the victims back to their loved ones, we are content that he will never be a threat to our community again.”

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tennessee man who killed 4 women, unborn baby gets 261 years