In the early morning hours of Tuesday, November 4, 2014, the quiet community of Laurel, Indiana, was disturbed by a grim discovery. Dwight Jones, a 59-year-old male resident, was found inside his pickup truck on Edgerton Street, suffering from a gunshot wound. Emergency services were dispatched to the scene, and Jones was airlifted to an Indianapolis hospital for medical attention.
Despite the efforts of medical professionals, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead on November 5, 2014.
The investigation into the shooting quickly led Franklin County Sheriff's deputies to a suspect. Bertram Rayburn Jr., a 61-year-old man from Laurel, was arrested in connection with the death of Dwight Jones. Another man, Gary Boyer Jr., was also questioned by the sheriff's department as a possible suspect in the shooting. Court documents later revealed that the incident may have been the tragic culmination of a night of heavy drinking and arguing involving the victim and the alleged shooter.
Bertram Rayburn Jr. was formally charged with murder and criminal recklessness for his alleged role in the death of Dwight Jones. In a court appearance in December 2014, Rayburn pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him. If he had been convicted of the murder charge, he would have faced the possibility of spending up to six decades in prison. However, the legal proceedings against him did not reach a trial. Public records indicate that Bertram L. Rayburn Jr. of Laurel passed away on November 20, 2017, at the age of 62. His death brought an end to the prosecution for the murder of Dwight Jones.
