Yates pleads guilty to Walton woman's murder, gets life (PHOTOS)

DeFUNIAK SPRINGS — The man accused of killing a 60-year-old Walton County woman last August pleaded guilty to murder Thursday.

Jeffrey Yates, 41, will spend life in prison without parole for the Aug. 17, 2009, killing of Elizabeth “Cookie” Andrews. She was shot to death and found the following day. Her 1996 Ford F-150 pickup truck was missing.

Read the full story on the arrest »

Paxton Mayor Hayward Thomas spotted Yates driving the truck near the Alabama line three days later and contacted lawmen.

Okaloosa County sheriff’s deputies began to follow Yates at low speed. During the chase, Yates tossed a gun and clothing from the truck before pulling over and surrendering.

Yates was charged with first-degree, pre-meditated murder, armed carjacking and robbery with a firearm.

According to reports, Yates did odd jobs around Andrews’ home south of Gaskin.

Walton County Circuit Judge Kelvin Wells sentenced Yates on Thursday.

In another murder case, Teresa McKee had her pre-trial hearing rescheduled Thursday. McKee’s next court appearance will be Sept. 23.

McKee is accused of shooting 45-year-old Stephanie Lockwood of DeFuniak Springs. Lockwood was found in August 2009 inside her house trailer after a neighbor reported hearing gunshots.

In a third murder case, Thomas McCoy has had his pretrial hearing continued to Nov. 18.

McCoy is accused of pre-meditated, first-degree mur-der in the April 2009 shooting death of Curtis Brown at Northwest Florida State College’s Chautauqua Center in DeFuniak Springs. McCoy and Brown were former co-workers at the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. in Valparaiso.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for McKee and McCoy.

John Tomlinson also had his pretrial hearing continued Thursday. His next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 23.

Tomlinson, a former Santa Rosa County sheriff’s deputy, is being tried in Walton County on charges of sex crimes against children.