Vivian Sutton Miles, a 60-year-old woman who ran a country grocery store in the rural outskirts of Baxley, Georgia, was shot and killed during a robbery on Thursday, January 28, 1971. The assailant fled the scene, leaving the Appling County community stunned.

Authorities initially described the suspect as a white male about 35 years old with dark hair and said he was believed to be driving a 1963 light blue Falcon. The investigation later identified and arrested William Joseph Pierce Jr., who was charged, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison for Miles’s murder.

If anyone knew Vivian, frequented her store, or has information about the events that day, please share what you remember.