Bio 

David Lynn Jordan was born on March 24, 1964. Public court records describe him as a Tennessee man who had been married more than once before his marriage to Donna Renee Jordan, also known as Renee Jordan. He had four daughters from his relationships, and evidence presented during the penalty phase described him as a father who maintained close ties with his children.

During the trial, defense evidence described Jordan as having been raised in a stable family. A clinical psychologist testified that Jordan’s parents were active in the community and that Jordan had tried to build a stable family life for his children. The same testimony also stated that Jordan had struggled with depression, anxiety, insomnia, alcohol use, and past drug abuse.

Jordan married Renee Jordan in 2000. Their daughter was born in 2001. By late 2004, the marriage had deteriorated. Renee Jordan had begun divorce proceedings and had hired attorney Linda Sesson Taylor in December 2004. Court records show that she had also discussed obtaining a restraining order against Jordan and had an appointment scheduled for January 12, 2005, the day after the shootings.

The State’s theory was that Jordan became angry because he believed Renee Jordan was having a relationship with a co-worker, Johnny Emerson, and because she wanted a divorce. Witnesses testified that Jordan made threatening calls and statements before the murders. On the night before the shootings, Renee Jordan told relatives and neighbors that she was afraid of him.

Murder Story

On January 11, 2005, David Lynn Jordan went to the Tennessee Department of Transportation facility in Jackson, Tennessee, where his estranged wife, Donna Renee Jordan, worked. The shootings took place at a TDOT garage office commonly known as “the crow’s nest.”

Before arriving at the TDOT facility, Jordan was involved in a traffic incident. Witnesses said he ran a stop sign while driving a red pickup truck and struck a green car driven by David Gordon. Gordon followed Jordan to the TDOT facility to confront him about the collision.

Inside the TDOT office, Jordan pulled a handgun and shot Renee Jordan. Witnesses testified that he also shot Jerry Wayne Hopper, who was in the office at the time, and shot two TDOT employees, James Goff and Larry Taylor. Goff and Taylor survived their injuries.

After leaving the office, Jordan encountered David Gordon outside. Gordon had followed him to the facility after the accident. Jordan retrieved a rifle from his truck and shot Gordon multiple times. The Tennessee Supreme Court later stated that Gordon was shot 13 times.

Jordan then returned to the TDOT office and fired more shots into Renee Jordan’s body using the rifle. Medical testimony showed that Renee Jordan had been shot 11 times, while Jerry Hopper died from multiple gunshot wounds and David Gordon died after suffering at least 13 gunshot wounds.

Police pursued and arrested Jordan the same day. Officers recovered multiple firearms, including handguns, a shotgun, and a Norinco SKS rifle that had been modified to fire automatically. During transport and questioning, Jordan made several statements about Renee Jordan and the shootings. One officer testified that Jordan said his wife was dead and “full of holes,” and that other people “just got in the way.”

Jordan was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of felony murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated assault, and leaving the scene of an accident. The felony murder convictions were merged with the first-degree murder convictions for Jerry Hopper and David Gordon. The aggravated assault convictions were also merged with the attempted murder convictions.

On September 25, 2006, Jordan was sentenced to death for the murders of Renee Jordan, Jerry Hopper, and David Gordon. He also received consecutive 25-year sentences for the attempted murders of James Goff and Larry Taylor, plus 30 days for leaving the scene of an accident.

The Tennessee Supreme Court upheld his convictions and three death sentences on September 22, 2010. The court also set an execution date for September 27, 2011, though that execution did not take place.

In 2016, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the denial of Jordan’s post-conviction petition. The court noted that he continued to challenge his convictions and death sentences, including claims of ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct, venue issues, and constitutional challenges to Tennessee’s death penalty scheme.

As of the latest available Tennessee Department of Correction death row listing, David Lynn Jordan remains on Tennessee’s death row.