LeRoy Jernigan was 41 when he was shot and killed on June 3, 2006, while working as a cleaning contractor at the Circus Restaurant on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh, North Carolina. He was a husband and father of two, remembered by family and friends for a big personality and a generous heart, and his loved ones have honored him by serving meals to the community during holidays.

The investigation identified Samuel James Cooper as the suspect; Cooper was arrested and later convicted on five counts of first-degree murder for the killings of Jernigan and four other men between 2006 and 2007. At trial, 52 state witnesses and 11 defense witnesses testified over 16 days of testimony during a monthlong proceeding. The jury recommended life imprisonment without the possibility of parole rather than the death penalty.