On a tragic Saturday, August 25, 2018, the life of 33-year-old Jeremy Apperson of Philadelphia, Mississippi, was cut short in a senseless act of violence. Apperson, a white male, was a transport driver for Prince Oil Company and a lifelong resident of Neshoba County. The events that led to his untimely death unfolded at a CEFCO convenience store on Mississippi 16 west.
That evening, Apperson, accompanied by his wife Samantha and their 10-year-old son, was at the gas station when Robert Leon Jackson arrived. Jackson, who was out on early release from prison, initiated a robbery. After demanding money from another individual in the parking lot and then fatally shooting the store clerk, Megan Staats, Jackson approached the Apperson's vehicle. While Apperson was pumping gas, Jackson pointed a handgun at Samantha who was in the driver's seat. In an act of profound courage, Apperson drew his own concealed weapon to protect his family. However, Jackson fired multiple shots, fatally wounding Apperson.
In the aftermath of the horrific event, Robert Leon Jackson was apprehended and faced multiple charges, including two counts of capital murder for the deaths of Jeremy Apperson and Megan Staats. In February 2020, Jackson pleaded guilty to all charges. He was subsequently sentenced to two life sentences without the possibility of parole, in addition to 90 years in prison. This brought a measure of legal closure to a tragedy that deeply affected the Philadelphia community and left a family to mourn the loss of a husband and father who died a hero.
