The suspect in the 45-year-old homicide of a Punta Gorda store clerk has been identified as a then active-duty Charlotte County Sheriff's Office deputy who reported the killing.
The case, investigated several times over the years, was picked up again after the county formed a cold case unit in 2009. New evidence and witnesses lead investigators to the suspect, former Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Road Patrol Deputy John J. Greer. He acknowledged his involvement a year before he passed away in March 2024.
“I have always said that we will not hide from our past, no matter how dark," Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell said about the case. " This case shows that we will always seek the truth, even when we may not like what we find. I want to be clear that this individual does not represent the overwhelmingly great men and women who have worked for this agency over our century-plus of existence. I am angry at the scar he has left on our reputation, but I am even more upset about the people he hurt through his vile actions. My heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones.”
On Monday, November 5, 1979, at approximately 1:40 a.m., Greer, on-duty at the time, radioed the Charlotte County Sheriff’s dispatch center and reported he discovered a homicide. Greer said he found the clerk at the Farm Store had been murdered. The Farm store was on Highway 17 and North Washington Loop Road in Punta Gorda.
A heavy law enforcement response followed the report. The medical examiner determined the victim, Adele Marie Easterly 25, was shot twice with a 12-gauge shotgun — once in the back and once in the head. Numerous people in and around Adele’s life were interviewed and some were considered potential suspects.
During the initial investigation, no evidence or information was developed that would establish a solid suspect. Information received, evidence, and statements obtained years later would explain why.
A report from the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office said that, initially, many Sheriff’s Office investigators and commanders were concerned with Deputy John Greer and some believed he could be responsible for Adele’s death but there was a lack of substantial evidence to back up suspicions. Some deputies were already suspicious because of an earlier investigation and other strange behavior exhibited by Greer.
Just slightly more than two months earlier, Greer was involved in another fatal situation.
On August 27, 1979, Greer called the Sheriff’s Office and reported his wife, Jackie Greer, shot herself in their home in Port Charlotte. Greer was off duty at the time.
An investigation was completed, and although investigators suspected something was not right about the incident, there was no evidence to prove the case was anything other than suicide.
Greer was suspended from the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office on October 3rd, 1980, at 10 a.m., apparently while under investigation for other activities, and resigned that same day.
Another death reported
Another female acquaintance of Greer was found dead while sitting in her Ford Mustang in a wooded area of Port Charlotte. Her husband had reported her missing on September 20, 1980, and her body was found on September 29, 1980.
The cause of death was undetermined, but it was suspected she overdosed on pills because empty pill bottles were found in the car. Her body was too decomposed to determine the cause of death. No signs of trauma were noted. The female left behind a suicide note that appeared to be legitimate.
Her husband told Sheriff’s officials that Deputy John Greer had been following his wife around and was coming to their house while on duty and attempting to have sexual relations with her.
The Cold Case team suspects this is why an internal investigation was opened on Greer by the Sheriff’s Office, ultimately resulting in his resignation. There are no records available to substantiate this theory.
Over the years, these cases have been examined from time to time by several different detectives.
In October 1986, detectives located and interviewed one of Adele’s friends. Her friend told a detective she was afraid to come forward before because she was afraid of a deputy. The friend stated she had conversations with Adele about her different relationships.
Adele told her she had been dating a Charlotte County deputy. The deputy would visit her on night shift and bring his gun into the Farm Store to “protect” her. The friend felt this gun was an additional one other than his duty weapon. (NOTE: Greer carried a personal double barrel 12-gauge shotgun in his car.)
Adele was shot twice with a 12-gauge shotgun, and no casings were found at the scene. Double barrel shotguns do not self-eject spent shells. It was common in those days for deputies to carry personal shotguns and rifles in their patrol vehicles.
Adele told her friend she became aware the deputy she was involved with was married and later tried to break up with him. Adele stated to her friend that the deputy had told her that he informed his wife he wanted a divorce. He said his wife took his service revolver and was going to shoot herself. They fought over the gun, and it went off and his wife was killed.
About two weeks before her murder, Adele told her friend she was afraid of the deputy. When asked by the detective about John Greer, Adele’s friend said she believed that to be the name of the deputy Adele was seeing. No other deputy lost a wife to suicide or homicide in that time period. The Farm Store was in a zone that Greer worked very often during midnight shift.
In November 1986, detectives requested that a crime scene investigator with blood splatter training examine Greer’s wife’s death scene. An investigator from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office examined the scene but could not determine if her death was a suicide or homicide. He did determine this death could not have occurred in the manner Greer described. Greer told responding deputies he was sleeping and heard a “pop”. He looked for his wife and saw smoke coming out of the closet. He opened the door and found his wife was in the closet and had been shot. Chemicals used to detect blood were used, and no blood splatter was found on the inside of the door. There was evidence of blood in the door jam, which would prove the closet door was open at the time of the shooting.
Cold case unit formed
The current Cold Case Unit was formed in 2009, and these cases were included in their inventory. The detectives started examining several cases, including these two.
In 2016, the detectives featured the Adele Easterly case on the Charlotte County Sheriff’s unsolved cases website. The detectives purposely released more information than normal with the hope someone with knowledge of this crime would respond. This release was designed to let potential witnesses know a law enforcement officer was potentially involved, and they had an idea who the officer was.
This is the text of the release posted in 2016:
“On November 6th, 1979, at approximately 2:00 AM, a 25- year-old Arcadia woman, Adele Marie Easterly was found shot to death at the Farm Store located on U.S. 17 in Ridge Harbor. She was an assistant manager. A deputy checking out a suspicious vehicle discovered the brutal murder. Easterly was shot twice with a shotgun. The killer escaped with approximately $7.34 from the store. Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit Cold Case Detectives believe that the male suspect in the murder of Adele Easterly has left the State of Florida and has been residing in Kentucky/Tennessee for many years. Although the now elderly male (age late 60’s early 70’s) suspect’s identity is known to law enforcement, their identity is being held for investigative purposes. Cold Case detectives believe that this elderly male suspect has intimate knowledge of law enforcement practices and has tailored their criminal activities to avoid being exposed to identification, apprehension, and criminal prosecution. Cold Case detectives strongly believe that this now elderly male suspect (Kentucky/Tennessee resident) has openly shared their knowledge and involvement in the Adele Easterly murder with others, including during threatening vocal and physical behavior/altercations and/or domestic violence violations against women. Cold Case detectives are actively investigating this case and ask that these people with knowledge about this suspect and the murder of Adele Easterly contact them at the numbers above.“
This post paid off when detectives received information that a former Sheriff’s Office Explorer had knowledge about John Greer. Cold Case detectives arranged an interview with her and learned she had been sexually assaulted numerous times by John Greer, and he had threatened to kill her.
During one sexual assault, Greer told her to “ask them dead bitches like Adele Easterly what happens when they say no to me.” The Explorer was working in dispatch the night Adele Easterly was found dead in the Farm Store. She observed Greer drive into the Sheriff’s Office complex and continue to the east side of the building before entering. The east side was the Sheriff’s entrance, where the locker room was located; the deputy entrance was typically on the west side. Greer entered the east side door, and the Explorer saw him with what appeared to be a long gun in his hand, and he looked disheveled. She also noticed one of his gloves was off and he had something on his bare hand that could be blood (Greer was known to wear black gloves while on duty).
When Greer saw her, he either motioned or told her to get back into dispatch. After a few minutes, he drove from the east side of the building to the west side and came back inside. He looked like he just showered. Cold Case detectives started searching for any other victims or witnesses that could add information to support a criminal charge.
The detectives interviewed several past employees and Explorers in the Sheriff’s Office. Additional information obtained supported some of the statements of the victim/Explorer.
The Cold Case Detectives developed probable cause to arrest Greer. The detectives continued to investigate with the hopes of developing more information that would help obtain a conviction. Once the detectives obtained as much evidence and information as possible, an interview with Greer was attempted. The detectives were aware of Greer’s location, and he was monitored as much as possible over the years. Greer had been living in Kingsport, Tennessee, for several years.
Greer interviewed at care facility
Cold Case Detectives discovered Greer moved from his home to an extended care facility in Kingsport. In April 2023, Cold Case detectives traveled to Kingsport and interviewed Greer.
At that time, he was bedridden and could only give short answers to questions. He appeared to understand questions but could not carry on long conversations. When asked directly if he shot Adele Easterly and his wife, Jackie, Greer admitted to shooting them. Cold Case detectives could not confirm with Greer if he shot his wife Jackie intentionally, or if it was an accident as he previously told Adele Easterly.
Cold Case detectives determined Greer’s health was seriously compromised, and he would most likely never leave the care center. It was determined Greer would never be well enough to stand trial, but the deaths of Adele Easterly and Greer’s wife were confirmed to have been at the hands of John Greer. Greer passed away at the care center in Kingsport, Tennessee on March 2, 2024. He was 77.
After leaving the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office in 1980, Greer applied to several agencies and worked in a few police and sheriff’s offices, usually near the west coast of Florida. Greer also was a pilot and held a variety of pilot and aircraft-related positions in and around Kingsport, Tennessee.
The Cold Case Unit will continue the investigation into Greer to determine if he was or could have been involved in any other violent crimes in Florida and other states. No other victims have been identified to date.
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