Fourteen-year-old Cameron Horne-Crook was a student at Northwest Rankin Middle School who played on the eighth-grade football team and was looking forward to starting high school. His mother, Violet Horne, described her son, a Black male, as "fun, loving" and always "cracking jokes." Tragically, his life was cut short, and his death marked the first of two devastating losses for his mother, who would lose her older son, Bryson, to gun violence less than a month later.
On the evening of
March 25, 2024, Cameron was picked up by an acquaintance from a friend's house in the Brandon Reservoir area. According to police, the group was joyriding when Cameron was shot multiple times in the back of the vehicle. His body was later found on Ridgecrest Drive in Jackson, Mississippi, where he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation led to the swift arrests of three Rankin County teenagers. Two days after the shooting, police took 17-year-old John Foote and 16-year-old Maxle Mooneyham into custody. The following day, a third suspect, 15-year-old Siyaski Crawford, was also arrested. Police stated they believed Foote was the one who pulled the trigger. Investigators also alleged that after the shooting, Mooneyham drove back to Rankin County, where he cleaned his car in an attempt to destroy evidence.
All three teenagers were charged as adults with murder. During initial court appearances, John Foote was denied bond, while Maxle Mooneyham and Siyaski Crawford were each given a $1.5 million bond.
In April 2024, the charges against two of the suspects were altered during preliminary hearings. The murder charges against Mooneyham and Crawford were dismissed. Mooneyham now faces a charge of tampering with evidence. Crawford’s case was sent to a grand jury for consideration on a charge of accessory after the fact of murder. John Foote remains charged with murder and is awaiting court proceedings.
Police have not publicly released a motive for the killing, but Cameron's mother believes the act was born out of "just hate." As of April 2024, the case against Foote is pending. Anyone with information is asked to call the Jackson Police Department at 601-960-1234 or Crime Stoppers at 601-355-TIPS.
