On a summer day in Henning, Tennessee, the body of 27-year-old Jessica Lee Ann Hunt was discovered alongside Berry Morrow Road on June 15, 2018. At the time of her tragic death, the young woman, born in San Bernardino, California, was three months pregnant. An investigation into her death determined that she had been shot.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, along with several other law enforcement agencies, launched an extensive investigation into the murder of Jessica and her unborn
child. The investigation led to the identification of multiple suspects. Over the course of the following months and years, three men were indicted in connection with the brutal crime. Sequna Copeland and Bryson Bonds were the first to face charges, which included premeditated first-degree murder. Copeland was apprehended after being placed on the state's Top Ten Most Wanted list.
A third suspect, Tommy Taylor, was indicted in October 2019 on a series of charges mirroring those of his alleged accomplices: two counts of premeditated first-degree murder, two counts of felony murder, and one count of especially aggravated kidnapping, among other charges. The indictments against the three men painted a grim picture of the events leading to Jessica's death, with additional charges including tampering with evidence, abuse of a corpse, and theft. The investigation also uncovered evidence of witness intimidation, leading to the indictment of a fourth individual, Jacovas Barbee, who was charged with retaliation and coercion of a witness in the pending murder case against Copeland.
While the legal proceedings against the accused moved forward, Jessica's family was left to mourn her loss. She was remembered as a beloved daughter, sister, and friend, survived by her mother, father, two sisters, and two brothers. The case drew significant attention as a tragic story of a young life and her unborn child taken by violence, leaving a community to grapple with the senselessness of the crime as they awaited justice.
