Teen dies shielding cousin in shooting

BROOKHAVEN, Miss. - A Mississippi teen says his life was saved by his 18year-old cousin who shielded him from bullets.

Caleb Edwards, 15, said the accused shooter — whom he knows as Corey Godbolt — demanded to know where his cousin’s parents where. Jordan Blackwell, 18, said they were gone to another town.

At that, Godbolt “just started shooting,” Edwards said.

As people scrambled to hide inside the Brookhaven home, Blackwell used his own body to shield his cousin Edwards from the gunfire.

“He loved me enough to take some bullets for me,” Edwards said.

Edwards’ 11-year-old brother, Austin Edwards, was also shot to death in that living room early Sunday. They were among the eight people killed in three houses in a rampage that started late Saturday after law enforcement officers were called about a domestic dispute.

The boys had been playing video games with their friend Xavier Lilly, 16, in a house where family members said about 12 children had gathered.

Deputy sheriff William Duer was among those killed. The other seven were all relatives or acquaintances of the accused shooter.

Investigators said Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, will be charged with one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the charges could change.