In the quiet town of Jesup, Georgia, a tragic event unfolded on the evening of January 8, 1993, forever altering the lives of a local family. Terry Ralston, a 37-year-old mother, was working at her family's laundromat on Macon Street with her 15-year-old son, Michael. As they were preparing to close for the night, around 9:00 p.m., they were accosted by a 17-year-old named Larry Jenkins, Jr.
Jenkins forced Terry and Michael into their own van and drove them to a secluded, wooded area near some railroad tracks. There, he ordered them out of the vehicle and made them lie face down on the ground. In a cold and calculated act, Jenkins shot both mother and son with a. 22 magnum handgun, ending their lives. The bodies of Terry and Michael were discovered later, left in a ditch where their lives were taken.
After the murders, Jenkins brazenly took Terry's van. He proceeded to pick up some friends, and together they drove to a nightclub in Waycross. Later, they went to a house in Alma, where they spent the night. The following day, Jenkins and his friends returned to Jesup. Displaying a shocking lack of remorse, they went to several local businesses and cashed in hundreds of dollars' worth of quarters that Jenkins had stolen from the laundromat after the kidnapping and murders.
Law enforcement was alerted to the stolen van, and they soon spotted it in Jesup. Jenkins attempted to flee but was apprehended by the police. A search of his person revealed a chilling piece of evidence: Michael Ralston's learner's permit was in his pocket. This, along with other evidence gathered during the investigation, led to his arrest and subsequent charges for the double homicide.
Larry Jenkins, Jr. has faced a long and complex legal battle for the murders of Terry and Michael Ralston. He was first tried and convicted in 1995, receiving a death sentence for each of the murders. However, this conviction was later overturned by the Georgia Supreme Court due to a conflict of interest with his defense counsel and an inadequate investigation into a possible defense. He was tried and convicted for a second time in 2014, but this verdict was also overturned by the Georgia Supreme Court, which ruled that his confession should not have been presented as evidence.
Finally, in April 2025, after a four-day jury trial in Glynn County Superior Court, Larry Jenkins, Jr., then 49, was convicted for the third time. The jury found him guilty on all charges: two counts of Malice Murder, two counts of Kidnapping with Bodily Injury, one count of Armed Robbery, and one count of Theft by Taking. Following the delivery of numerous victim impact statements, the judge sentenced Jenkins to the maximum sentence possible: four consecutive life sentences with the possibility of parole.
