Professed Bloods leader accused of killing NC man goes to trial - but body never found
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- Jury selection began Monday in the trial of Durham defendant Darrius Lavale Tyson.
- Tyson faces charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree kidnapping.
- Prosecutors note higher burden in murder cases lacking a recovered body in North Carolina.
The trial of a Durham man accused of murdering a club promoter whose body has never been found began Monday with jury selection.
Darrius Lavale Tyson, 34, is charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree kidnapping in the March 2022 disappearance of 33-year-old Shawn Burton, The News & Observer previously reported. Burton was last seen leaving home on his way to work at a local nightclub.
Tyson, who has described himself to prosecutors as the top-ranking Blood gang member in North Carolina, is accused of working with at least three other men to kill Burton. The other defendants’ charges remain pending after a judge ruled their cases should be tried separately to ensure each man received a fair trial.
Prosecutors have a higher bar to clear in murder cases where a body has never been found. The N&O found two convictions in similar cases in North Carolina, though there may be more: Robert Jason Owens, who pleaded guilty to helping his uncle cover up the 2000 murder of Zebb Quinn in Asheville, and the conviction by a jury of James Opelton Bradley, who killed Shannon Rippy Van Newkirk in Wilmington in 2014.
Tyson’s case also faces another twist: his involvement in two cases where former Durham County jail staffers were accused of inappropriate involvement with him while he was detained there. Assistant District Attorney Mary Jude Darrow said in a November 2024 court hearing that Tyson allegedly impregnated both women.
One of the staffers, former Sgt. Nicole Locke, pleaded guilty in January to accepting a $500 bribe from Tyson in exchange for smuggled food and cellphone batteries.
The other staffer, former guard Jade Robertson, is accused of sexually assaulting Tyson, according to court documents. Robertson’s case remains pending.
What prosecutors say happened
Prosecutors will attempt to prove Burton and his truck were taken from an apartment complex at gunpoint the evening of March 22, 2022, court documents show. Blood spatter was found at his apartment, and his truck was found parked on a railroad track in Warren County the next day.
“It appeared that the vehicle had been ‘cleaned,’” Assistant District Attorney Mary Jude Darrow wrote in one document. “However, suspected blood spatter was located inside the truck.”
Investigators also found blood in a car Tyson had rented that week. DNA analysis confirmed the blood at all three locations belonged to Burton, Darrow said; Tyson’s defense attorney, Daniel Meier, has challenged that assertion, stating he’d been told at least one of the blood samples came back with an inconclusive result.
Burton’s truck, Tyson’s rental car and a third vehicle were captured on license plate readers and other surveillance methods heading to an auto shop in Henderson the night of Burton’s disappearance, according to Darrow. The shop’s owner told investigators Tyson was there about 1 or 2 a.m. that day, while another witness who was at the shop said he saw the owner retrieve some saws and plastic bags before the men left.
“There have been rumors that the body was moved up to Virginia, chopped up, disposed of,” Darrow said in a November 2024 court recording obtained by The N&O. “We don’t know.”
Meier, however, alleged Burton may have voluntarily left the area, stating he “had a side hustle” dealing drugs with gangs.
“[He] was also known for sometimes having a kilo or two of cocaine not make it to its final destination,” Meier said in the November 2024 hearing. “So he was in a dangerous profession. There are reasons for him to not want to be found.”
Burton and Tyson were actually friends, not enemies, according to Meier. Tyson had a budding music career in Durham and worked with Burton, who was a promoter, Meier said.
After his arrest in May 2022, Tyson was disciplined for having a cellphone, getting marijuana delivered to him in jail and other issues, Darrow said in the hearing. He was eventually moved to Central Prison because of those problems.
Tyson’s past
Tyson was previously convicted of an April 4, 2010, homicide in Durham, but that conviction was vacated in 2020, The N&O reported. Meier said in the November 2024 hearing that conviction was overturned because the Durham County District Attorney’s Office failed to hand over exculpatory evidence, or evidence favorable to the defendant.
Tyson was originally only charged with kidnapping Burton, but prosecutors indicted him on a first-degree murder charge in February 2023, court records indicate.
Meier filed a motion last week challenging that indictment, alleging it was improperly worded and didn’t explain any elements that could constitute first-degree murder.
As of 11 a.m. no jurors had yet been selected for the trial. Once the jurors are selected, attorneys for both sides will present their opening arguments.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
This story was originally published June 29, 2026 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Professed Bloods leader accused of killing NC man goes to trial - but body never found."
