An Anderson man will spend the rest of his life in prison after being convicted of a double homicide, announced 10th Circuit Solicitor Micah Black.
On August 14, 2025, after a four day trial, an Anderson County jury deliberated for just over an hour before convicting Frank Thomas Rhoads of two counts of murder and one count of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. The Honorable R. Lawton McIntosh then sentenced Rhoads to the Department of Correction for the remainder of his natural life without the possibility of parole.
On February 6, 2021, Rhoads gunned down Dequavious Tillison and Lorenzo Hunter as they sat in a vehicle outside Tillison’s house in the City of Anderson. Earlier in the evening, Rhoads and two family members confronted Tillison at a local bar about his relationship with Rhoads’ step-daughter. After the bar closed, Rhoads and his two co-defendants drove to Tillison’s house. When Tillison arrived shortly thereafter, Rhoads approached the vehicle being driven by Hunter and fired seven shots at Tillison and Hunter. Tillison was shot twice in the head, and Hunter – still seated in the driver’s seat – was hit 4 times. Rhoads then fled the scene with his co-defendants and proceeded to go on the run across the southeast. They were eventually captured in Virginia six days later after leading authorities there on a high speed chase down the wrong side of the interstate.
Solicitor Black prosecuted the case for the State, with assistance from Deputy Solicitor Josh Thomas, Investigator Michael Cox, and Victim Advocate Stephanie Joseph. Solicitor Black praised the work of his team, as well as Sergeant Matthew Anderson and other investigators from the Anderson Police Department for securing the conviction and life sentence. “Our community will simply not continue to stand for violence on our streets,” Solicitor Black said following the sentencing. “I hope that this life-without-parole sentence sends a clear message that my office will continue to fight alongside our partners in law enforcement to keep our community safe.”