Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/20pdf/20-507_h315.pdf
Page Number: 2

2 

MAYS v. HINES 

Per Curiam 

where he checked into the CeBon Motel.  Jenkins worked 
there as a maid.  A few hours after Hines’ arrival, the man-
ager put  Jenkins in  charge  of  the motel  and  provided  her 
with a bag of money to make change for departing guests. 
  In  the  early  afternoon,  another  visitor  found  Jenkins’ 
body in one of the rooms.  She was wrapped in a bloody bed-
sheet, and an autopsy later revealed several knife wounds 
that  included  deep  punctures  to  her  chest  and  genitalia.  
Her money, wallet, and car keys were missing, as was her 
vehicle.    Around  the  same  time,  another  employee  saw  a 
man leaving the motel in Jenkins’ car.  The employee tried 
to follow the vehicle, but it sped away. 
  Later  that  afternoon,  a  group  of  travelers  found  Hines 
and the car—now broken down—along the side of the road, 
and  they  offered  to  drive  him  toward  his  sister’s  home  in 
Bowling Green.  During the trip, the travelers observed that 
Hines  had  dried  blood  on  his  shirt  and  was  carrying  a 
folded-up jacket.  They also noticed that Hines “seemed real 
nervous,” “ke[pt] contradicting himself,” and “talked a lot,” 
at one point claiming that he had purchased the car from 
an “old lady for $300 or $400.”  Id., Doc. 173–2, at 33, 56; 
id., Doc. 173–3, at 34–35. 
  Hines told a different story to his family.  His sister no-
ticed  the  blood,  and  Hines  admitted  that  he  had  stabbed 
somebody  at  the  motel—although  he  described  the  victim 
as a male employee who had assaulted him.  For good meas-
ure, Hines physically demonstrated how he had knifed the 
supposed assailant.  Despite his inability to pay for a bus 
ticket just a few days earlier, Hines purchased a barbecue 
grill  and  informed  his  sister  that  he  had  acquired  a  sub-
stantial sum of money.  Family members also noticed that 
he had the keys to Jenkins’ car, which were on a distinctive 
keychain.  According to Hines, he had taken the keys in a 
struggle with yet another man who had tried to rob him. 
  Hines altered his tale again when he surrendered to law 
enforcement.    Before  the  sheriff  started  questioning  him,