Where is Donna Herring now? Details explored ahead of Southern Fried Lies on Oxygen
Donna Herring, of Camden, Arkansas, was found guilty in 2018 of conspiring to commit wire fraud for forging the will of Matt Jacobs, who died in a car accident in 2015. Jacobs, a survivor of the Deepwater Horizon explosion, reportedly bequeathed the majority of his $1.7 million inheritance to Herring's daughter, Alex Peterson, rather than his son, Jordan, leading to an FBI probe.
The investigation uncovered multiple secrets, including Jacobs' affair and other local deaths. Herring pleaded guilty, serving a sentence of 41 months in prison. She now lives in Camden, maintaining a low profile, with no recent public updates.
Southern Fried Lies, a two-hour Oxygen special, explores this case, featuring interviews with Herring, Jordan, and investigators. The show is directed by Rachel Reid Holbrook and set to premiere on April 27, 2025, at 6 pm ET/PT on Oxygen. It streams exclusively on Peacock from April 29.
The official synopsis of Southern Fried Lies reads:
"An Arkansas realtor sets her daughter up with the richest guy in town, but when he mysteriously dies, she’s accused of stealing his fortune. Additional deaths and a web of lies ensnare the rural community, leaving a family destroyed."
Everything to know about Donna Herring
Donna Herring is a retired real estate agent in Camden, Arkansas, who was accused in a highly publicized case of fraud. She entered the real estate business in 2006 at Century 21 Campbell & Company after taking a course at the North Little Rock National School of Real Estate.
Referred to as Camden's "unofficial mayor" because of her ties to the community and people skills, she was a real estate agent and pageant mother of Jordan Alexandra "Alex" Peterson. Alex was born in 1995 from Donna's first marriage to James Peterson, which was dissolved in 2000.
In 2007, Donna married Charles "Doug" Herring. Herring helped clients buy and sell properties, including assisting Matthew Seth Jacobs, a Deepwater Horizon survivor, with a home purchase in 2012. Herring, in 2018, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in forging a will to aid her daughter. She was given a 41-month prison sentence.
Donna Herring now lives in Camden, Arkansas, keeping a low profile. After facing bankruptcy in 2019, with $101,000 in debts and foreclosure, there are no recent updates on her professional activities. She appears in Oxygen’s Southern Fried Lies (April 27, 2025).
"They tried to put this whole spin on it that we had done something sinister," Herring said while discussing the case on the special.
The true story behind Southern Fried Lies
The Oxygen special Southern Fried Lies, airing on April 27, 2025, delves into the 2015 death of Matthew Seth Jacobs, a 34-year-old Camden, Arkansas, resident who survived the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion.
Jacobs received a $1.7 million settlement, making him one of Camden’s wealthiest men. In January 2015, he died in a car accident when his truck hit a tree. His will, discovered by real estate agent Donna Herring, reportedly bequeathed the bulk of his assets to his fiancée and Herring's daughter, Alex Peterson, and little to his teenage son, Jordan Jacobs.
An estate attorney uncovered that the will was forged, leading to an FBI investigation.
“Are we fu*king playing mind games? Or are we sending some people to fu*king jail?” Jordan rhetorically asked on the special.
He recalled that this reaction was a result of his frustration as he questioned the authorities about the serious allegations and the forged will involving his father’s death.
It was revealed that there was also a secret mistress and other inexplicable deaths involved in the case of Jacobs' untimely death. Donna Herring was at the centre of it all.
Donna Herring admitted to forging the will, saying, “I made a horrible mistake.” The investigation explored whether Jacobs’ death involved foul play, but no evidence confirmed this. Herring’s actions led to a fractured community, with locals noting that the town hadn’t been the same since.
The case exposed Camden’s gossip-filled underbelly, leaving unanswered questions about additional deaths. Donna Herring pleaded guilty to the charge in 2018. She was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison in November 2019. While her exact release date was not publicly confirmed, she likely completed her sentence around early or mid-2023, followed by three years of supervised release.
Additionally, she was ordered to pay restitution, though specific amounts are not detailed in available records. No further charges, such as those related to Jacobs’ death or other local incidents, were filed against her.
Watch Southern Fried Lies on Oxygen, premiering on April 27, 2025.
