The Murder of Jenna Verhaalen
For this case I watched an episode of Forensic Files. It’s season 14 episode 13, titled ‘Low Maintenance.’
A college student is found dead in her apartment.
Background
Jenna Verhaalen was living in Bryan, Texas, and attending Brinn College, at the time of her death. She was described as a dedicated student, and worked as a waitress at a restaurant called Wings ‘N More.
Jenna was very kind, made friends easily, and worked really hard in school and at her job.
Jenna Verhaalen
The Murder
On April 9, 2008, Jenna’s boyfriend Spencer Hood, stopped by at her apartment to pick up a book he had left there. The door was unlocked, so he let himself in.
Inside, he found his girlfriend lying on the floor of her bedroom. He told a neighbor, who then called 911. The neighbor described Jenna as being “unconscious, and cold to the touch.”
There was no sign of forced entry. Jenna’s purse was hanging on the hook next to the front door, and her wallet, credit cards, cash and keys were all inside.
At Jenna’s autopsy, the medical examiner noted no injuries, besides a bruise on her forehead. Jenna had also clenched down on her tongue with her teeth. However, when they took a closer look, they noticed that Jenna had signs of petechial hemorrhaging in her eyes. Jenna had been manually strangled, and someone had most likely used their bare hands. They also noted that there was no apparent sign of sexual assault.
The Suspects
The first suspect was Jenna’s boyfriend Spencer. He told the police that he had been at Jenna’s the night before after she came home from work around 9pm. He said he left a little after 12am, and called Jenna at 12:47am to say goodnight. He discovered her at 11:30am the next morning.
Jenna and her boyfriend, Spencer
The next suspect was a 26-year-old man named Sean Stevens. He was also attending college, and lived near Jenna. He became a suspect when eyewitnesses said they had seen a shirtless man near Jenna’s apartment between the hours of 12-2am, the night Jenna died. They all knew of Sean, and said it looked like him.
The third suspect was a 29-year-old maintenance worker named Jeremy Rosser. Jeremy was a divorced father of two, and the show really wanted everyone to know that Jeremy had never been in trouble with the law before. They said it several times.
Jenna had reported an incident involving Jeremy two months before she died. She had gotten out of the shower, and found Jeremy standing in her apartment. Jeremy told Jenna that he didn’t know she was home.
All three men denied killing Jenna, and all three of them left town.
Spencer Hood, Jeremy Rosser and Sean Stevens
The DNA
The police turned their attention back to the crime scene, in hopes of finding DNA that would lead them to their killer.
They hit the jackpot when they found skin cells underneath Jenna’s fingernails, a drop of blood on her shirt and blood drops on the carpet. The blood sample was a mixture of Jenna’s and an unknown male. It was also a match the male DNA found under Jenna’s nails.
The police wanted a DNA sample from all three of their suspects. They also asked over 50 males that Jenna either lived near or worked with for their DNA. None of them were a match.
Spencer was found at his parent’s house. He told the police that he left town because he wanted to be with his family. He provided his DNA, and let the police photograph him. He was ruled out after his DNA didn’t match.
Sean was also found at his parent’s house in Oklahoma. His brother had just returned from Iraq, and he wanted to see him. Sean also provided his DNA, and was not a match.
The third and final suspect, Jeremy, was turned in by his ex-wife. She told the police that Jeremy showed signs of violence towards her before their divorce. He had shoved her down, and put his hands around her neck.
The police searched Jeremy’s truck, where they found a stolen laptop from a neighbor of Jenna’s. They also found keys to various apartments, even though Jeremy had been fired a week after Jenna’s murder.
Jeremy was cooperative, and provided his DNA. However, this DNA was a match.
Jeremy being questioned by police
Arrest and Conviction
The police confronted Jeremy about his DNA being found on Jenna and in her apartment. He told the police that he believed his DNA was on her because he had given her a handshake. The police obviously knew that was bullshit.
When they told Jeremy that he was arrested for murder, he had a strange reaction and told them that he wasn’t talking anymore.
Jeremy Rosser pleaded guilty to murder. He didn’t want to make his family go through a trial. He was sentenced to 55 years in prison.
There were several theories as to why he killed Jenna, unfortunately, Jeremy has never admitted as to why he did it.
The first theory is that he broke into Jenna’s apartment while she was at work. He then hid in her second bedroom, and waited to kill her. He didn’t plan on Spencer, her boyfriend, being there, so he waited an extra 3 hours. After Spencer left, Jenna went to bed, and he attacked her.
The second theory is that Jenna looked very similar to his ex-wife. At the time of Jenna’s murder, he was going through a divorce.
Other
Jenna’s parents sued the Autumn Woods Apartments where Jenna lived at the time of her death. The suit said that the complex ignored their daughter’s complaints about Jeremy Rosser.
According to their corporate office, Jenna only complained, but didn’t file an actual complaint.
I couldn’t find any more information other than that they sued.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Whatever the reason is as to why he killed Jenna, he took an innocent person’s life. Jenna was just at the peak of her young adult life. She was working towards a job in either law or government, and now she will not be able to make a difference in the world. Jeremy Rosser is a piece of shit, and deserves to rot in prison.
There are way too many cases like this, where a young woman is killed by an employee in the one place they should feel safe: their home. Jenna was in her home, and Jeremy thought it was okay to enter her safe place. It’s heartbreaking.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/jenna-verhaalen-murder-where-is-jeremiah-rosser-now/
http://construction-maison-fr.blogspot.com/2017/04/parents-of-student-murdered-by.html
https://forensicfiles.fandom.com/wiki/Low_Maintenance
