On the morning of August 1, 2026, Crestview police responded shortly after 4:30 a.m. to a 911 report near Brock Avenue and Church Street and found 65-year-old Crestview resident Willie Earl Jackson lying at the edge of the roadway. He had been shot and was dead. Jackson was last seen around 1:30 a.m. that same morning several blocks from where his body was found.

The Crestview Police Department called in the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Crime Scene Unit and the First Judicial Circuit Medical Examiner’s Office. Investigators say they believe there were likely several witnesses to events leading to Jackson’s death, but no one had come forward to give a statement. No suspects or arrests have been publicly identified.

Anyone with information about Jackson’s final hours or the shooting is asked to contact the Crestview Police Department or Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers.