A self-proclaimed serial killer in Memphis has been sentenced to an additional 159 years in prison, bringing his total sentence to 261 years.
Joshua Dotson, 24, compared himself to the villainous Michael Myers from the “Halloween” films while testifying at his first trial in August 2024.
Additionally, Dotson admitted to three additional murders while on the stand, for which he was sentenced on Friday.
“After five years, we are pleased to finally have justice for Dotson’s multiple victims,” Shelby County prosecutor Regina Lucreziano 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.”
Dotson’s murder spree began on Nov. 17, 2019, when he fatally shot 18-year-old Divieon Parker in a Memphis parking lot, authorities said.
He later gunned down two people, Reginald Anderson and Renita Bennett, at a park in the city on May 24, 2020, authorities said. Though Bennett initially survived the shooting, she later died from her wounds.
Dotson landed on Tennessee’s most wanted list after fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Jamesha Covson, and her unborn child on June 12, 2020.
Investigators said Dotson was angry after Covson posted about her pregnancy on Facebook. On the stand, Dotson said he killed her because she told police he was involved in another murder.
Dotson was first tried for the murders of Covson and her baby, for which he was sentenced in October 2024 to 102 years in prison. He then pleaded guilty to the murders of Parker, Anderson and Bennett, for which he was handed an additional 159 years behind bars.
Despite calling himself a “serial killer,” there was no distinct pattern to the murders Dotson committed, according to investigators.
