Overview

• Drayton, known as 23 Brazy, pleaded in Southampton County Circuit Court to second-degree murder plus malicious wounding, attempted murder, shooting into an occupied dwelling, and two firearm counts.
• The shooting on Aug. 9, 2023 on Artis Street in Franklin wounded a 37-year-old man and fatally injured 10-year-old La’Marj Deshawn Holden, who died three days later.
• After nearly 10 months on the run, U.S. Marshals arrested Drayton in June 2024 at Brookside Square Apartments in Boykins, and investigators say a relative had been sheltering her.
• Charges were reduced from an initial first-degree murder count following completion of a sanity evaluation requested by the defense in March.
• Second-degree murder in Virginia carries a potential sentence of five to 40 years.