In 1993 a 35-year-old prostitute named Jeanie Ann Childs was stabbed 65 times in a south Minneapolis apartment. Her murder was a cold case for decades until DNA evidence led investigators to Jerry Westrom. Westrom’s DNA was found on bloody items in the apartment and he matched a bloody footprint from the crime scene.
Westrom’s attorney said the footprint evidence was subjective and pointed the finger at an alternate suspect, her pimp who lived in the apartment and who’s hairs were found in the victim’s hand. (That man died in 2017).
After deliberating just a few hours the jury found Westrom guilty.
I didn’t attend the entire trial. I was only there for opening and closing statements. Here is some of what I sketched:
