Report: Young Mother Left to Die After Drunken Crash

Jason Alan Pepperdine’s clothes were covered in blood on Dec. 31, 2014, when investigators from the TxDPS showed up at his trailer in tiny Rochelle.

His truck, a white 1999 Dodge 2500, had just been sighted at the town’s Post Office, and police en-route were notified that the vehicle had just been involved in two hit-and-run crashes.

As Trooper Sergeant Stephen Jones pulled into the lot of the post office on 7^th St., he met with Rochelle Fire Chief Michael Johnson, who had spoken to Pepperdine and had personal knowledge of the man behind the wheel.

Leading the way to Pepperdine’s residence roughly two blocks away, Johnson showed Trooper Jones to the trailer, which stood on the corner of 6^th and Railroad with the door open.

“I knocked on the door and attempted to locate Pepperdine,” Jones wrote in a probable cause affidavit filed with the McCulloch County District Court. “Lying on the floor just inside the trailer, I observed blood stains on the floor and clothing that appeared to have a large amount of blood on them.”

Pepperdine, 37, was around back of the trailer when Jones arrived, and as he spoke to the Sergeant he wobbled on his legs and slurred his speech, words coming out in a cloud that reeked of alcohol.

He told Trooper Jones that he had been driving his Dodge that night, and in fact did have an accident with a tree, but maintained that he was alone in the vehicle. His story, however, wasn’t consistent with the physical evidence the trooper then located on his truck.

“Upon inspecting the pickup, I observed damage to the front of the vehicle and [a] large hole in the front windshield extruding outward,” Jones wrote. “While inspecting the hole in the windshield, I observed blood, tissue and long hair stuck in the broken glass. Pepperdine had very short hair.”

Initial reports of the two crashes Pepperdine was involved in stated that the first involved an injured female. The call came in just after 7 p.m., and dispatch relayed to responding officers that the crash had occurred on FM 422, just 10 miles east of Brady. Railroad, a cross street of Pepperdine’s residence, happens to also be known as FM 422.

As Pepperdine continued to deny that there had been anyone else in the vehicle with him that night when he crashed, Trooper Jones requested that the suspect complete a set of field sobriety tests, since he had admitted to operating a vehicle in a public space and was showing signs of intoxication.

At the conclusion of the tests, Jones determined that Pepperdine was intoxicated, and the trooper cuffed him and placed him in his patrol car.

Meanwhile, Rochelle Fireman Kyle Mosely headed down FM 422 to the scene of the crash and located a young female lying in the westbound ditch. The woman was non-responsive and covered in blood. She was identified as 22-year-old Jaclyn Proctor.

Neither the crash report nor the affidavit indicate that Proctor was ejected from the vehicle in the crash.

“When paramedics arrived at the scene, they confirmed that the female subject was deceased,” Jones wrote. “Pepperdine was then transported to the county jail by Deputy White.”

Shortly after arriving at the McCulloch County Jail, Pepperdine agreed to a blood draw, and waved his rights and provided a statement.

“Pepperdine stated that he was operating his white Dodge pickup at the time of the crash,” Jones reported. “He also stated that the female, Jaclyn Proctor, was a passenger in the vehicle, sitting in the front center seat at the time of the crash.”

A few hours after his arrest, Pepperdine was booked into the McCulloch County Jail and charged with intoxication manslaughter, a second-degree felony punishable by 2-10 years confinement and a fine not to exceed $10k.

He is currently being held at the Burnet County Jail in lieu of a $100k surety bond.

Jaclyn Proctor left behind a 3-year-old son, Bryce Proctor, as well as an extensive family. Her funeral was held on Wednesday at the San Angelo Cowboy Church. 

The investigation into the crash is ongoing.