On April 22, 2020, the body of 34-year-old Shawn Gregory Whiteside, a white male from Bogalusa, Louisiana, was discovered by a motorist at the entrance of a rural hunting camp off Highway 1072. An investigation by the Washington Parish Sheriff's Office revealed that Whiteside had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the chest. The witness who found the body reported seeing a vehicle speeding away from the scene, which led investigators to a residence on Denham Avenue in Bogalusa.
At the
residence, detectives located the vehicle and questioned the occupants, 29-year-old Joseph Anthony Peoples and 18-year-old Allison Cook. During questioning, Peoples allegedly admitted to shooting Whiteside. The investigation determined that Whiteside was a passenger in a car with Peoples and Cook when an argument broke out. Peoples, reportedly in a jealous rage because he believed Whiteside was flirting with Cook, shot him in the chest while they were in the vehicle. Despite Whiteside's pleas for his life, Peoples proceeded to shoot him. Afterward, Peoples and Cook drove to the hunting camp and left Whiteside's body at the entrance.
Joseph Anthony Peoples and Allison Cook were arrested in connection with the death. Peoples was charged with second-degree murder. Cook was charged with being an accessory after the fact and obstruction of justice for her role in helping to dispose of the body. In January 2024, a Washington Parish jury found Joseph Peoples guilty of second-degree murder, two counts of obstruction of justice, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, with an additional 120 years to be served consecutively for the other charges. During the trial, Cook testified against Peoples, stating that he shot Whiteside in a jealous rage.
