[3][4] During the nine months he spent in jail before posting bond, Cox frequently expressed his anger to his cellmates, blaming Kim for his situation and declaring that he would kill her once he was free.
When Cox was released in April 2010 after being granted bail, he decided to confront Kim with a gun on May 14, 2010, when he purchased a .40 caliber handgun and extra ammunition.
While she was mortally wounded and slowly dying from massive blood loss, he sexually assaulted his 12-year-old stepdaughter three times in front of her.
The armed hostage-taking incident was diffused after a SWAT team entered the house to apprehend Cox at around 3.23 a.m. on the morning of May 15, 2010.
[3] The trial lasted for five days until September 22, 2012, and the jury unanimously recommended the death penalty for Cox on the most serious charge of capital murder.
[3] In July 2018, Cox wrote a letter to the judge, the district attorney, and his lawyer, in which he admitted to killing his wife and stated he would do it again if given the opportunity.
Later that year, Cox sought permission from the Mississippi Supreme Court to dismiss his counsel, waive all appeals, and move forward with his execution.
During that hearing before Union County Circuit Judge Kent Smith in February 2021, the court heard testimonies from Cox, his family, friends, and two mental health experts.
[11][12] On October 22, 2021, the Mississippi Supreme Court issued an official death warrant for Cox, scheduling his execution to be carried out on November 17, 2021.
[20] On November 17, 2021, 50-year-old David Neal Cox Sr. was formally put to death via lethal injection at Mississippi State Penitentiary; two weeks short of his 51st birthday.
[31] The Pontotoc County Sheriff's Department, District Attorney's Office, and experts in Archeology and Anthropology affiliated with Mississippi State University participated in the search for Felicia Cox's remains.