Sheriff John Peper was killed in a single-vehicle accident on U.S. 52, four miles north of Lebanon, while responding to the scene of another accident.

   He was a passenger of the vehicle driven by a deputy, who was his brother-in-law, when it went out of control on the sleet-covered roadway and flipped over.

   Sheriff Peper suffered fatal injuries when he was thrown into the back seat while the deputy suffered only minor injuries and survived.

   Sheriff Peper, a Democrat from Lebanon, was in the first year of his two-year term in office and was survived by his wife, sister and three brothers.

   His wife, Audra Peper (1896–1973), was appointed sheriff to serve the remainder of her husband's term, becoming the first female sheriff of Boone County and the fifth female to serve as a sheriff in the state of Indiana.

Military Service United States Army World War I

Memorial Tribute • In 2010, U.S. 52, four miles north of Lebanon in Boone County, was dedicated the Sheriff John H. Peper Highway in his honor.

Historical Note • Sheriff Peper held the third-shortest term in office, at 38 days, of the 21 sheriffs with line of duty deaths in Indiana.

Read more on our research at Honoring Our Fallen Sheriffs.