John Crawford III was born on July 29, 1992, to Jordan Crawford Jr. and Tressa Sherrod in Cincinnati, Ohio. His parents separated and his father relocated to Tennessee for work.

 

John continued to live with his mother in Cincinnati but would regularly visit his father in Jackson. They would often make the 400 mile journey to visit each other and spend weekends together. 

 

Growing up, John was in and out of different public and private schools around Cincinnati. Despite the frequent change in schools, he was still able to get his high school diploma at the age of 20. His father was encouraging John to go back to school, hoping John would apply to Kentucky State, his alma mater. 

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John was killed by police in August 2014.

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He was the father of two small boys, Jayden, and John IV.