On July 12, 1987, Sandra D. Reaves, 22, was shot to death inside her family home on McKinley Street in Milledgeville, Georgia. Her 19-year-old sister Evelyn Reaves and their 41-year-old mother, Dorothy Hightower, were also shot; Dorothy was found dead at the scene and Evelyn died of her wounds two days later. The victims were discovered in the early morning by Dorothy’s brother, Curtis Reaves, when he arrived to pick up his daughter.

Police quickly focused on Dorothy’s husband and the women’s stepfather, John Washington Hightower. He was arrested at about 4:30 a.m. the same day while driving Dorothy’s car. A small-caliber handgun later identified as the murder weapon was recovered on the vehicle’s floorboard and reportedly bore traces of flesh and blood. Investigators say Hightower had argued with his wife in the week before the killings, bought the gun earlier, and then shot Dorothy in the head before going to Sandra’s room and shooting her twice; he later admitted to the killings.

A jury convicted John Washington Hightower in 1988 and sentenced him to death. Readers who knew Sandra or have information about the case are asked to come forward.