James L Dejarnette Jr, 29, was found dead in his Virginia Beach home in the 1500 block of New York Avenue during the early hours of March 15, 2000. Police responded at 12:40 a.m.; the State Medical Examiner later determined he died from a gunshot wound and ruled the death a homicide. Friends and family knew him as DeJay; he sang in his church gospel choir and helped run before- and after-school programs for local children.

The last known contact was a phone call at 9:35 p.m. on March 14, and investigators place the murder between that call and the discovery of his body. Some items were reported stolen from the residence, and his vehicle was found abandoned about a week later. A 2009 lead identified a person seen with Dejarnette at a 7-Eleven hours before he was found: described as a Black male in his early twenties, very short hair, about five feet nine inches and 190 pounds. Authorities have not identified or located that person, and no arrests have been made.

Anyone who knew Dejarnette, saw him the night of March 14–15, 2000, or recognizes the person described is asked to come forward with information.