The Murder of Alex Jackson
Alex Jackson was born in 1996, and raised in Jacksonville, Illinois. He was described by his loved ones as kind, caring, and bubbly.
After graduating from high school, Alex went to college to study environmental science. Alex’s brother and mom, Lalonna said Alex would share random science facts with them and loved helping the environment.
Alex came out as gay during his sophomore year of college. He also moved to Indianapolis, Indiana to live with his aunt, Heather.
He moved out in July 2017 and into his own apartment. Alex’s family said his life took a turn around this time. Alex ended up quitting school, and his job, and began hanging out with the wrong crowd.
Alex Jackson
Alex and his mom, Lalonna Jackson
The 911 Call
On September 13, 2019, a resident called 911 around 3 pm. She said there had been a foul odor for a few days. She found a body near her fence on her property.
The body was already in stages of decomposition. The 911 caller told the police that she had heard gunshots several days earlier on September 9 around 4:30 am.
The victim had been shot once in the head. One of the victim’s pockets had been pulled out. There was no cell phone, wallet, or ID found at the scene.
The police found 7 .9mm shell casings at the scene. The police determined that the murder weapon used was an automatic handgun most likely a Glock.
There was blood splatter on the fence and some rocks below it. It was believed that the victim had been going over the fence when they were shot.
The Wrong Crowd
The victim was transported to the medical examiner’s office. An autopsy was performed the next day. It was determined that the victim was a male probably in his 20s, around 6’2 or 6’3”. It was confirmed that the victim died from a single gunshot wound to the head.
The forensic pathologist collected fingerprints from the victim. The police ran the fingerprints through AFIS. The victim was identified as Alex Jackson from Jacksonville, Illinois.
After notifying Alex’s family, the police learned that Alex had been having some issues with his new friends. He also had moved out of his apartment due to a water leak from the apartment above him and had been staying with friends.
Alex also had to drive a rental car that was supposed to have been returned on September 10. A press release was issued for a 2018 blue Hyundai Elantra.
The Friends
After the press release came out, a friend of Alex’s contacted the police and mentioned that Alex had been having issues with a man they referred to as ‘Chad.’
On September 6, Alex was tagged in a Facebook post. The post said that Alex was “robbing the dead.” The post was created after Alex was already dead.
The police located this “friend” and asked him about it. He said he and Alex were friends, but he and Alex had a falling out. He said he and Alex partied together on September 6, and he created the post after. He had purchased drugs, and almost overdosed. He woke up to find that some money of his was missing. He referred to himself as the dead as he was passed out and believed Alex stole his money.
He was eliminated as being as a suspect as his phone location had put him far away from where Alex was found. He told the police to look into one of Alex’s friends named Britney Overton. Alex looked up to her and referred to her as his big sister.
The Big Sister
The police went to speak to Britney. They revealed to her that Alex had been shot and killed. Britney said she and Alex had been friends for about a year, and that Alex wanted to get an apartment with her.
Britney said she last saw Alex on September 8. She said they drove around in Alex’s rental car. She said Alex dropped her off around 11 pm. Alex told her that he was going to meet some guy from Grindr.
About a week after his death, the police obtained a warrant for Alex’s Grindr account. But it was a dead end.
A few days after Alex’s death, his rental car was located by the Indianapolis police. The car had been found wrecked and abandoned on a street.
Inside the car, the police found a set of keys to a Buick and cigarettes. The front plate to the radio had been removed and the radio had been pulled out. The police were able to find and collect several fingerprints on the radio.
The Tip
Several weeks passed without any new leads. This was until the police received a phone call from a concerned grandmother.
The woman told the police that her grandson, Justin Blake had confessed to shooting someone named Alex. Justin had also shown her an article about Alex Jackson being identified as the victim.
Justin’s grandmother explained that Justin had a tumultuous life. He was only 18 at the time and had already been in trouble for stealing a van.
In October 2019, about a month after the murder, Justin was arrested for robbery. The police went to the Hendricks County Jail to speak to him.
Justin was asked about Alex. He admitted that they had only met about 2 times. Justin was confronted about the anonymous tip implicating him in the murder. Justin denied killing anyone or mentioning to anyone that he was involved.
Justin revealed that he had met Alex through his girlfriend, Britney Overton. Justin’s story was similar to Britney’s. He said they were all together on September 8. He said Alex left in his rental car around 11 pm to meet someone that he met on Grindr.
Justin kept denying that he had killed anyone, so the interview ended.
The police learned that Justin had possession of a stolen gun when he stole the van. The gun was a revolver and was not a match to the gun believed to have killed Alex.
The Arrests
A search warrant was obtained for Britney’s social media and cell phone. Through her social media, the police found several conversations between Britney and her party friends. Britney had been interested in purchasing a gun.
Britney’s phone placed her on Mann Road, near where Alex was located at 4:31 am. At 4:45 am, just 15 minutes after the gunshots were heard. she logged into Facebook and unfriended Alex.
Justin’s fingerprints were a match to the prints found on the radio in Alex’s rental car. Britney’s DNA was found on the Buick keys found in the rental car.
On October 3, 2020, Britney and Justin were arrested. Justin had since been released from jail and lived with his new girlfriend.
The Motive
Justin was confronted with the evidence but continued to deny that he killed Alex. He asked for a lawyer after he failed a voice stress test.
Britney denied killing Alex too until she was confronted with her phone records.
Britney said Alex picked her up on September 8 in his rental car. She said they drove around and picked Justin up later that night. Britney said Alex suggested that they try to make easy money. They told Alex to contact a man on Grindr and set up a date.
Britney said she waited in the car while Justin and Alex went to the apartment. She said Justin began to pistol whip the guy. Alex became afraid as he didn’t think it was going to get violent. Britney said they had stolen credit cards, a gaming station, and a checkbook.
Britney and Justin became concerned that Alex would snitch on them. They drove out to Mann Road. Britney said Justin held a gun to her head and told her to stop the car.
Justin got out of the car and dragged Alex out. Britney said she was looking straight ahead but heard several gunshots and Alex’s screams.
Britney said Justin dropped her off after the murder and threatened to kill her if she told anyone. Justin left in the car with the gun and Alex’s phone.
The Convictions
The police knew Britney was lying and wasn’t as afraid of Justin as she let on.
Britney and Justin had been driving the rental car in the days after Alex’s murder. Britney said they had been drinking and Justin crashed after he ran off the road.
Justin Blake was charged with murder, felony murder, and robbery. Britney Overton was charged with felony murder.
In February 2022, Justin went on trial. His defense blamed the entire murder on Britney.
On February 24, 2022, Justin was convicted on all counts. He was sentenced to 61 years in prison.
In May 2022, Britney accepted a plea deal. Due to her testimony, the murder charge was dropped. She was sentenced to 20 years for robbery resulting in bodily injury. She also received a credit and had 17 1/2 years left to serve. She will be eligible for parole in 2033 and will be 39 years old.
Britney Overton and Justin Blake
FINAL THOUGHTS
As Alex’s family said in this episode, Alex was in over his head with his new friends. Alex wanted to fit in but was not okay with the amount of violence that he saw that night. Without knowing Alex, I believe he wouldn’t have snitched on his friends, especially Britney. Alex’s life was taken away for no reason and his so-called friends ruined their lives for no reason as well.
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