Ep 40 | Jerry Asbell Transcript
Ep 40 | Jerry AsbellÂ
Transcript
Before we begin this podcast, please be advised that the following episode contains language that some listeners may find offensive and inappropriate. The opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not reflect the views of the podcast producers. Listener discretion is advised. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.
Visit betterhelp.com/VOK Today to get 10 percent off your first month. That's BetterHelp, H E L P. com slash VOK. Or if you'd like, click the link below in the show notes. If you're not guilty, you get to tell the world what happened. If you're guilty, you get to tell the world you're sorry. This is the first time I've even actually really even told this story.
You know what I'm saying? So I have been to prison a few times. I wouldn't call myself a criminal or anything like that. It was the realest s*** I've ever seen. It reminds me of something you see on TV. So you were actually playing around with the gun and put it to somebody's head, joking around and I'm freaking out.
I'm driving a f***ing car with blood all over it, glass missing. I asked her to help me, you know, and she did what I asked her to do.
You are now listening to the podcast Voices of a Killer. I'm bringing you the stories from the perspective of the people that have taken the life of another human and their current situation thereafter in prison. You will see that although these are the folks that we have been programmed to hate, they all have something in common.
They are all humans like us that admit that they made a mistake. Will you forgive them, or will you condemn them? They are currently serving time for their murders, and they give us an inside glimpse of what took place when they killed, and their feelings on the matter now. Here are the voices of those who have killed.
In this week's episode of Voices of a Killer, we're bringing you an exclusive This exclusive interview with Jerry Aspel from Hannibal, Missouri. Jerry, who has maintained his silence about the crime for the past two years, is breaking that silence for the first time. News outlets have claimed Jerry's narrative and claimed to have an official account of Jerry's crime.
But now, Jerry has the chance to tell his story in his own words, setting the record straight and reclaiming his narrative about the killing. And the chaotic aftermath that followed. In our conversation, we'll trace back Jerry's long history in and out of the criminal justice system. The course of Jerry's life has been marred by his run ins with the police and the destructive power of m*th has catapulted him down a dark path.
All this culminated in the crime that Jerry will recount for us today, and for which he is currently serving 30 years in prison. We'll hear Jerry's account of one turbulent drug fueled day in August of 2020, the remorse he has for his actions, and his hopes to turn his life around with this second chance he's been given in prison.
So sit back and listen closely as Jerry shares his intense story in this episode of Voices of a Killer. So Jerry, where are you from? I'm from Hannibal, Missouri. Did you grow up there all your life? Yeah, I pretty much grew up there. I was born in St. Louis, but I grew up in Hannibal, Missouri. How would you describe your childhood?
I don't know, a little off, you know what I'm saying? I grew up in an abusive home. Yeah, how's that? It's the s*** every day, it's the eggshells, you know what I'm saying? I was punched and beat for drinking too much Mountain Dew out of the two liter, you know what I'm saying? So it just all varied on how much my stepfather was that day.
Yeah, how old are you right now? I just turned 33 here on October 8th. Okay. Were your parents, were they together when you were a child? My biological father and my mom was together for a while and then he was, he ended up becoming incarcerated. Do you have a relationship with your parents now? I do with my mother.
Did you get into dr*** and alcohol as a young kid or young adult? Yeah, yeah, I did. At what age did you do hard dr***? Hard dr***? I didn't start hard dr*** until I was like around 24. Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah. What did you do whenever you got out of your parents house? What kind of Did you go to the military? Did you work?
So, I was incarcerated from the age of 15 to 17, and then I got out when I was 17, and then I lived with my mother for a year, and then I got incarcerated and been a child as an adult, and I went and did some county time, and then from there, I ended up Beating this woman and getting married and having kids with her.
What did you go to prison for or get locked up for at 15? I went to prison originally the first time for stealing and assault. Do you consider yourself violent? No, I don't. I just seem to get put in violent situations. Do you have anger issues? Not usually. I mean, I have before. So, after you got out, what was the second stint in prison, what'd you go in there that time for?
Let's see, uh, just parole violation, dr***. What was your drug of choice? m*thamphetamines. It sounds like, uh, Jerry, that m*th is kind of your downfall in your situation, is that accurate? Absolutely. Uh, I, I don't disagree at all. I intend to, I feel like I'm a really good person. Uh, I'm very caring, I got a big heart.
But dr*** have been my downfall and, uh, you know, I have, and I, I don't feign out, I guess you could say, and I do, uh, How would you use these, this m*th? Was it snorting it, smoking it, shooting it? I would smoke it and snort it. Did you engage in a lot of criminal activity whenever you do m*th? So, I mean, really not, like, so I have been to prison a few times.
I wouldn't call myself a Stone Cold criminal or anything like that, but yes, I have done my fair share of little things. Many of the challenges we face as adults. stemmed from our childhoods. And this rings true for Jerry Asbill, too. In Hannibal, Missouri, Jerry grew up in an abusive and unstable household that laid the foundation for his turbulent adulthood.
Jerry's troubles started early. dr*** like m*th veered Jerry off course and launched him down a destructive path. He became involved in criminal activity as a teen, landing him in prison for the first time at just the age of By his 20s, Jerry was no stranger to the inside walls of a prison cell. He was a repeat offender with a lengthy prison record and a history of clashing with the criminal justice system.
On paper, Jerry might look like a violent, seasoned criminal. But Jerry insists he's not the quote unquote stone cold criminal somebody might make him out to be. Rather, He's a good person with a kind heart. That might surprise you when you read about the violent nature of Jerry's crime. In 2020, he shot and killed 32 year old Amanda Johnston at a cemetery in Monroe City.
Well, what's funny is, you know, you say a stone cold criminal, but I'm actually looking at your news article and it's pretty difficult to read because it says that, you know, after y'all parked the car at the cemetery. He pointed a loaded semi automatic handgun at the victim and pulled the trigger twice, shooting her once in the head.
So the article, yes, so when the article, what happened was, it's the first time when the gun was shot, the safety was on, and what happened was, is that we was going down the road, so Amanda was driving, I was in the passenger seat, my girlfriend was in the passenger seat. And I was waving the gun around, playing with the gun, playing with it, and the safety's on, you know what I'm saying?
And I pull it up and I act like I'm gonna pull the trigger and whatnot, and then I pull it back up and I'm playing with it again and the gun goes off. I did, I put it to her head like I was gonna, I'm playing with her, you know what I'm saying? I put it to her head and then somehow, somehow, I don't know how I managed to get the safety off of it, but I took, the safety was off and I shot her.
So, you were actually playing around with the gun and put it to somebody's head, joking around and Yes, I, I, I was, I wasn't like, uh, you know, so somebody shot it, so there's a couple different stories out there, you know what I'm saying, but I mean, yes, the, the, the incident, the killing itself, yes, was, was an accident.
Okay. So, how did you know the victim? I had met her, uh, a few different times through, through a couple people. I had met her through a buddy of mine that's named Cody. Yeah, a buddy named Cody, which he's passed away now. Okay. Yeah, so the victim was in the vehicle with you and your girlfriend was in there too, that all, y'all three?
Yes, so it is just us three, yes. So, did you always carry a gun with you? So, at this point in time in my life, I was, in fact, carrying a gun from time to time, yes. And whenever you put it to her head and was messing around, did your girlfriend say anything like stop messing around with me? No, not at all. No, no, she didn't, you know, and she was all calm, you know, she was calm and cool until the gun went off, of course, and then when the gun went off, you know, she was driving down the road.
We was going about 25, 30 miles an hour down the road. Who was driving? I had to hurry. Amanda was. I had to hurry up and throw the car in park. Yes, the victim was driving, yes. And you were sitting behind her? I was in the passenger. You reached over from passenger seat to driver's seat, put it to her head and pulled the trigger?
Yeah, I mean, yes. Did the prosecutors think that you did it on purpose? So, you know what, I don't know. I didn't even, I just took a plea deal because I had so many charges against me, you know, and Whenever you shot her and you said you had to basically jump over there and put the car, you know, did you, did you slam the car in park or did you put your foot on the brake?
I had to slam the car in park. I, I, at that point in time, I had no, I didn't even know what to think, how to think, what to do. When that gun went off, it probably was extremely loud. And what did your girlfriend immediately do as soon as that gun went off? Did she scream? She didn't scream, but she instantly was, uh, she was frightened, she was definitely terrified.
It was definitely unexpected, nobody knew it was going to happen, you know what I'm saying? So, it was definitely unexpected, plus it was definitely loud, because all the windows was up until the bullet went through the window. It went through her head and through the window? Yes. Wow. That's crazy. And whenever you finally got the car to stop, how much of a populated area were you in?
The f***, we was in the middle of town. I mean, we was literally right next to a house. I was actually on surveillance system. I was on somebody's surveillance system from their house. Holy crap. Yeah, whenever you stopped and everything Did people start gathering around and watching, or anything like that, or will No, it was, it was about 2, 3 o'clock in the morning.
What had happened after I had through the car and parked, immediately I looked back at my girlfriend, and she's kind of crying, and I panic, because, uh, you know what I'm saying, it's just happened, and I immediately look at her, and I'm like, oh my, I'm like, what the f***, I said, what are we doing, I said, what are we doing, I said, are you going to help me?
And she was, you know, and then, you know, I, you know, I get out and I, you know, I put her in the backseat. You put the body in the backseat? Yes. I panicked and put her in the backseat and drove off. So whenever you went around to the driver's side, you opened it up, did she start to kind of fall out or was she slumped over towards the door?
She was slumped over. I had to pull her out. What did your girlfriend do or say whenever you were taking that body and putting it in the backseat? I mean, honestly, she did what she did, but I asked her to do, you know, I asked her to help me, you know, and she did what I asked her to do. At the time. Jerry's crime attracted a buzz of media coverage and typing Jerry's name into an internet search today.
Pulls up several articles about the case from local news outlets. All of them run in a similar story that goes something like this. On August 5th, Jerry and his. The couple shared in a death threat. The man, and his girlfriend, Jessica, offered cash and m*th to Amanda Johnston in exchange for a ride to the St.
Jude Cemetery in Monroe City. Amanda drove the couple in her black Ford Taurus and parked at the cemetery. Then, Jerry took out a semi automatic handgun and shot it twice, once fatally in the back of Amanda's head. But Jerry's account challenges him.
The shooting, Jerry says, was entirely accidental. While the news framed it as a hostile, deliberate murder, Jerry says the gun went off unintentionally while he was toying with it. Amanda had been driving through the middle of town, and Jerry had to quickly slam the car and park from the passenger's side to avoid a crash.
The whole thing was a tragic but unexpected mistake. Of course, there may be more to the story, an argument, a darker motive. And Jerry could be downplaying what really happened. But Jerry's story is detailed and vivid enough to be credible, and he deserves a chance to tell his narrative. There is at least one other person who knows the truth, however.
Jerry's girlfriend, Jessica, witnessed the shooting from the back seat and agreed to be an accomplice in covering up the killing. More on Jessica's reaction after the break. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.
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Was your blood all over you from that? And y'all got her in the back seat? Did your girlfriend get in the front seat with you and y'all drove off? Did you ever look back at the body as you drove off? Yes, I had looked back a couple times because, you know, there were still nerves and stuff, you know. From the time you left from putting her in the back seat to your next destination, how far of a drive was that?
It was about four minutes or so. What was that discussion like with your girlfriend, that four minutes? We really didn't speak, you know what I'm saying? I asked her if she was alright, you know what I'm saying? The main thing was I was trying to make sure she was alright because, you know, she just And she was frightened, she was terrified, you know what I'm saying, and, uh So where did y'all go?
I went back to Amanda's house. The victim's house. Is anybody at her victim's house? No, nobody was there. I freaked out. I went straight to her house to try to figure out what the next step was going to be because, you know, I'm already a convicted felon. I'm not supposed to have a gun. I'm already been arrested for a couple different assault charges, you know what I'm saying.
So I'm kind of known for violence. I'm already 1212 a violent bit, so I'm known for violence. You know what I'm saying? So, I panic, you know, I do not call the cops, you know, so I start processing things through my head, and so I decided to make a bad decision and make it look like somebody robbed her house, and then from there I took off to Hannibal.
Did you take the body and put it in the house? No, I actually took the body and, well, I originally took the body to Hannibal. But I was, I got caught trying to dump the body in Hannibal. So I had to take the body to Frankfort, Missouri. So hold on, let's back up. You said you made the house look like it got robbed, her house, right?
Yes. So you just, what did you do? You just tore the place up and took a bunch of stuff? Yeah, I just kind of threw some stuff around and took her TV. And then while this is going on, where's the body at? The backseat. The whole time. Okay. So y'all make the house, her house look like it got robbed. Then you get back in the car with the body and drive to Hannibal?
To go and what, do what with it? Clean, get rid of the body. Where? Well, at this time I don't, I, so everything is just kind of, I'm scattered at this time. Are you really whacked out on m*th? Yeah, actually at this time I've been up for nine days. I'm not thinking right. You know, when they say people, usually when they get in a jam or they get uncomfortable, that they always run to places that they're familiar with.
That is very true. to me, anyways, because I went to straight to a place, where I was familiar, comfortable, to try to get rid of the evidence. So you drove to Hannibal, where did you try to get rid of the body? You said something like you got caught, trying to get rid of it, or something. I was actually trying to get rid of the body on on an outside road, I was very familiar with.
When a woman named Dreta Brooks pulled up on me While the body was hanging out the trunk. What did she say? Well, she actually gets very scared. She hollered up at us and she says, Hey, what are you doing up there? And immediately I tell my girl to shut the trunk. So she shuts the trunk, we get in the vehicle and we drive down and I pull up next to this Doretta Brooks.
And she instantly freaks out because she's seen A tarp and some hair hanging out the trunk. She knows it's a abandoned house. Nobody's lived there crazy, so she automatically, I, I have her statements and everything, so she automatically knows that there's something very, very wrong. Uhhuh well, she sees me reach for the gun as soon as she sees me reach for the gun.
She. Burns out, and then that's when I burn out and I go immediately straight to Frankfurt. So were you gonna shoot her? No, I, I, you know, you know what? I wasn't, you know, I, I was gonna pull it out though, you know, I just want, I don't, at this point in time, I'm so f***ing freaked out. I just wanna go home, you know what I'm saying?
I wish it was all over, but you can't, you know, you, yeah, I just wanna scare her pretty much, you know? I didn't wanna hurt the woman, you know, I wanted to scare her. So she burns out. And you go to Frankfort, you said. Yeah, if I go straight, I immediately hop on 61 and go straight to Frankfurt to dump the body.
With the body and the hair hanging on the back? No, I actually, I had to have my girlfriend get back out the car and shut the trunk for a second time. Because it opened back up. That's how the, the woman named Eretta Gross, uh, had seen everything. Wow. So y'all make it to Frankfurt? What was in Frankfurt?
Well, I drive about 15 miles up the road, and I, I, I drive, I throw it off this cliff. I throw the body off the cliff. You pull off on a random place, you grab the body, and y'all are both Has this ever happened to you before, uh, walking the body over to the edge of a cliff? It's like a drop off, yes. It's like a drop off cliff.
Yes. And what were you all, your girlfriends like, really on board with all this and she's. You know, I don't know what was going through her head. Maybe she was scared. Maybe she was scared and she thought that she had to do what I told her to do, you know what I'm saying? You know, I don't know. I can't really speak for her, what she was really feeling, now I have spoke to her since she has, she is out right now.
She had the opportunity to, we was actually at a gas station, when Amanda was still in the backseat, and I sent Jessica in to buy gas and cigarettes. And she could have told the clerk, hey, there's a dead body in the backseat, dude's got a gun, I'm scared, I'm scared to death, please help me. But she didn't.
She bought the cigarettes and the gas and she came right back to the car and we burnt out. But she was probably scared. She didn't just burn, you know, help you get cigarettes and burn out, she also threw a body off the cliff and made sure the hair wasn't in the, out of the trunk. I mean, that was a lot of stuff.
Wow. So how much time did she do? Well, she wrote statements on me, and she was going to go to trial and testify on me, so she, they gave me 30, and they, she took a total of, I think, 11 years? I think she got 7 for that charge, and I I believe it was for tampering with evidence slash improper disposable of a body is what she got, and I believe it was seven years.
Although shooting Amanda was an accident, going to the police was out of the question in Jerry's mind. As a convicted felon with multiple assault charges to his name, Jerry knew that police would immediately villainize and arrest him. But with a dead body sitting in the backseat of a bloody car, things were looking dire for Jerry.
His single objective became to dispose of the evidence quickly. By this point, Jerry had been awake for nine days straight. In a blur of drug induced panic and exhaustion, Jerry acted impulsively. He decided to frame Amanda's death as a robbery gone wrong by trashing the inside of her house and taking a few items of value.
Then, Jerry looked to dispose of Amanda's body. In times of crisis, people often turn to the places that they know best. That was true for Jerry, who drove out east to his hometown of Hannibal and tried to dump the body at an abandoned house. After an unexpected encounter with a neighbor, Jerry was then forced to drive south to the remote edge of the Here, he pushed Amanda's remains off a cliff and into a ravine close to a rock quarry.
Throughout all of this, Jessica remained by Jerry's side. Without talking to her, we can't know Jessica's true motives. Was she generally happy to assist or was she afraid of Jerry? Either way, Jessica complied and actively helped Jerry conceal his crime, effectively making her an accessory to the murder.
The ride home, I imagine, must have felt deeply uncomfortable. Whenever y'all toss the body off the cliff and you get back in the car, what's the discussion then? There really is none. You know, at this point, you know, I'm so f***ing high, you know what I'm saying? We just, I mean, we just threw a body off a cliff, you know what I'm saying?
What does somebody really say to each other, you know what I'm saying? Did I ask her if she was all right? You know, I lit a cigarette, you know, I handed it to her. I tried to make her feel comfortable, you know what I'm saying, but what do you do at a situation like that? Nobody knows what to do with a situation like that, you know what I'm saying?
Nobody prepared for that. Yeah, and okay, so where's y'all's next destination after y'all dispose of the body off the cliff? At this point in time, it's getting early in the morning, it's starting to hit daylight. I'm freaking out. Uh, I'm driving a f***ing car with blood all over it, glass missing, I don't have a cell phone, you know, I'm trying to make it back to Monroe City, so instantly I go to this car wash, and I'm thinking maybe if I spray all the blood off from the outside and the inside and vacuum all the hair, blood, and DNA out, maybe I can just go drop the car off and maybe I can just go home and this will all be over with.
And that's pretty much what I thought was gonna go down. So you wash out the car and you go drop it back off at the victim's house? That's No, I parked it in the trailer park at an abandoned trailer where I live. So you abandoned the car after you washed it? Yeah. And where'd you go after that? I went straight to my trailer.
What'd you do that day after all that happened? Did you finally settle down and spun out and went to sleep? Did you Well, I actually, I went straight to my trailer and then I had got a ride. And then after that ride I went to the bank. And then from the bank I went to the pharmacy. Well, when I got to the April's gas station, the police surrounded me and the person I was with, and he ended up going on a high speed chase, and then I ended up taking off, and I, within the next five hours, I end up f***ing kidnapping somebody, and And holding a hostage.
So did you, where'd your girlfriend go? Did you, y'all, y'all part ways? Yeah. Well she, at this time she's still at the trailer. Uh, I'm, I'm out running around and, uh, I, I'm actually ducking do the police at this point in time, but she's still at the trailer and I'm over still by this gas station. Okay. So whenever the cops pull up, I guess you were outta the vehicle and he was in it.
He takes off, you go on foot. Where's the first place that you go running from the cops and also were the cops on the foot chase with you? Well, no, they let me go, so I actually had lied to the police. I had, I actually lied to the police and said I was going to meet task force and they let me go. Oh, is that like a probation thing?
Nah, task force is like drug task force, you know what I'm saying, so I had told them I was going to meet task force. And they just had let me go and chase the dude I was with on the high speed chase. And so I had ran straight to this chick's house. She wasn't there. Then I got a ride to the trailer park, got some different clothes, and then I went back to that chick's house.
And then by the time I made it back to her house, she was there. So you knew to go get different clothes on and everything to make yourself look different, huh? Yeah, I mean, yes. And you said you kidnapped somebody. Where did you do this at? Well, so here's, uh, I didn't, uh, so they say I kidnapped her. So here's what had happened.
I had went to this chick's house where I was hiding from the police for, you know what I'm saying? And while I'm there, you know, I have been up for a while and I end up falling asleep. While I'm asleep, she goes through my pockets and she takes all my money and, and all my stuff out of my pockets. Well, when I wake up, I wake up to my girlfriend.
It's waking me up. Hey, where's, where's your money at? Where's, where's this at? Where's that at? And I'm like In my pocket. Well, she wakes me up, she says, there ain't nothing in your pocket. So, I instantly get up and I flip the f*** out. You know what I'm saying? Cause I've been at this chick's house, the only person here is her, and she went through my pockets in my sleep.
So what I had did was take her phone from her. And I told her I was going to break her phone and her TV if she didn't give me, you know, my money. And she tried to tell me she didn't have my money. So I went through her house, I ransacked her house, and I didn't find it. Well, I decided to go through her house one more time.
And when I went back through her house a second time, I found my money. Half of it. So that's when I freaked out on her, and then she started, as soon as I got loud with her and told her I wanted my money, she instantly started beating my girlfriend up at the time. She grabbed her by the hair and started beating her ass.
Well, the woman, which was, her name was Sara, she was roughly, you know, 220, 230. You know, and my girlfriend at the time was nothing but 120 pounds. So, while the girl was eating my girlfriend's ass, I had to shove her on the ground to get her off my girlfriend. And then I told her to remain on the ground, and then at that time she was crying.
And then I snapped back to reality, and I felt bad, and I'm like, oh my gosh, girl, are you okay? And then she asked for her phone, and you know, of course I felt bad, and I'm like, are you, you know, are you gonna call the police? And she said no, so I gave her her phone, you know what I'm saying? And, uh, texted her friend, and her friend called the police.
And the police showed up at that trailer? Not at that trailer, at the house. I got arrested. If you actually look at the newspaper article, it's going to show me getting arrested at a house. So whenever they arrested you, did you put up a fight and try to run? No. No, I didn't. I knew when, when I heard a knock at the door and I, Jessica answered the door.
I'm in the back bedroom and there's Jerry here and I know she shook her head because I've seen her shadow. The surreal hours after Amanda's death sound like something out of an action movie or a cop show. Within less than 24 hours of killing Amanda, Jerry found himself caught up in two close calls with Monroe City Police.
The first unfolded on the city streets when officers were investigating a burglary that had happened at a storage complex. When they approached Jerry and his friend The friend fled on foot, prompting a short lived police chase. Luckily, Jerry got let off lightly. Officers let him go when he claimed to be on his way to a drug program, but Jerry's run ins with police didn't end there.
Later, around 10pm that evening, a second incident took place where Jerry was involved in an altercation. With a friend at her house, police responded to a call and found the friend battered with a foot injury, claiming that Jerry had beaten her and chased her around the house with a knife. Two social security cards and a food stamp that didn't belong to Jerry were found on his person.
Officers led Jerry with his arms raised out of the house on Charles Street and took him and Jessica into custody. Within less than a day of killing Amanda, Jerry had twice caught the attention of the Monroe City Police. But now, as the officers served him charges of kidnapping and assault, they were unaware that the man they had caught was also Amanda Johnston's killer.
After the break We'll hear about how investigators discovered the truth.
So the police are there to arrest you for a kidnapping, not a murder, so No, actually, I wasn't a prime suspect. The dude, someone else was actually a prime suspect. For how long? For a little while, actually, until, I mean, at least for 72 hours, you know what I'm saying? Oh, 72 hours, they, then they figured out it was you?
Pretty much, yes. Did they pull you out of your jail cell, uh, from the other charges and question you about it? Yeah, actually after about 48 hours, 72 hours into being on this kidnapping, I get a warrant for first degree murder with an ACA. And it was pretty real, you know. So did your girlfriend have anything to do with it?
No, she had no clue anything was going to happen. I mean, it was all an act. Nobody knew nothing was going to happen. You know what I'm saying? It just, it just happened. She absolutely did not know anything was going to happen. Yeah. Did they pull you out of your cell though and question you about it? Yes.
Did you lie or did you confess?
For how long? I mean, I, this is the first time I've even actually even really even told this story. You know what I'm saying? So what did you tell them? I told her she was probably in St. Louis somewhere. So whenever you were, uh, in jail and the cops basically questioned you about everything, you told them a different story?
I didn't really give them a story. I just told 'em I didn't know. So they already knew she was dead. Because of the amount of blood they found in the vehicle. So, he, you know, they knew she was dead. Well, did they ever try to say that you did it on purpose? No. No, they didn't. So, uh, I only, I only get interviewed twice.
And on my second interview, he showed me a video of me at the car wash claiming the car out. So, as soon as, uh, the homicide detective wanted to show me that video, instantly, I'm like, oh, yeah, f***, I need a lawyer, you know? So, I mean, at that time, I didn't really have a story or a statement or anything, because, you know what I'm saying, I said I made it as a lawyer, so, I just never, after that, nobody's asked me for a story or anything, you know what I'm saying?
My lawyers didn't even ask me for a story. What they did was, they considered Jessica's story 110 percent credible, because she took them to the body. She was able to pinpoint locations at certain times, and then after she did that, they was able to locate me on certain video surveillance at gas stations, and the car wash, and in certain situations like that.
So she was able to pinpoint all that, so they made it, she was credible. So it was either, you know, she told him a story, and that's what the story was, you know. So Jerry, the girlfriend at the time had helped you with the body and everything, did you, do you still have a relationship with her? So I do call her from time to time and talk to her.
I spoke with her, it was probably, uh, I don't know, three weeks ago or four weeks ago or so. Ultimately, it was Jessica who caused Jerry's downfall. The Northeast Missouri Major Case Squad had been activated after Amanda was pronounced missing, and they had been pursuing other leads. But Jessica's confession became pivotal in their investigation.
Although she had initially helped Jerry in the cover up, Jessica admitted to helping Jerry hide the body for killing Amanda. Not only this, but she also guided investigators directly to Amanda's hidden remains in Pike County. Surveillance footage helped to pin Jerry to the specific locations and corroborated Jessica's story.
The investigators then built a strong case that implicated Jerry in Jessica's killing. Faced with the evidence against him, Jerry realized the severity of his situation. He sought a lawyer and chose to stay silent as investigators charged him with first degree murder and armed criminal action. To this day, Jerry has maintained his silence, never trying to clarify or set the record straight on his crime, even during the prelude to his trial.
Whenever, uh They came to you with a plea deal. What was the plea deal? The plea deal was second degree murder. 30 years. And you took that plea deal? Well, at first, you know, I tried to counteroffer, you know, I wanted to take 25. You know what I'm saying? I tried to, you know, I tried to take 20, I tried to take 25.
You know what I'm saying? I told them that, you know, of course you know that, you know, it was, you know, you know it was an accident, you know. Yeah, and it sounds like second degree is not accident. I mean, you intentionally No, I mean, no, I mean, so, it went from first degree capital, you know, premeditated, and then it got dropped down to second degree, you know what I'm saying?
You know, I couldn't get, you know, dropped to nothing else, but I just, I took the deal. They just didn't want to hear any story from me. One of us had to be convicted and, you know, it was, it was me. So did you, uh, did the victims loved ones, were they in the courtroom? Yes. Did they say or read a victim's, victim's info?
Oh my. It was the realest s*** I've ever seen. It reminded me of something you see on TV, and you know, when you watch some TV shows and about how, you know, people go to court and their loved ones, you know, come to court with a big ol bulletin board and stories and pictures and how this, and how you're a monster, and how you took my daughter from me, that's how it really was.
They actually drug me out the courtroom. As soon as I pled guilty, as soon as I said guilty and took 30 years, the whole courtroom actually started, it started getting riled up. They actually drug me out the courtroom. I didn't even get a chance to talk to my lawyer. Yeah, so that was pretty intense in there?
Yes, yes. Yeah. What's that feel like looking back now, you know, you're all spun out and, you know, you took some Oh, man, I feel very horrible, right, especially for her kids, because, you know, regardless of what kind of person you are, you know, you're, you're still your kid's hero. You can be a hoe, you can be a dope fiend, you can be a, you know, you can even be a sex offender, you can be whatever.
You know, your kids are always going to love you, no matter who you are. So, you know, her kids, they lost their hero, you know what I'm saying? So, I feel bad about that. And I got a bunch of kids myself, and they know why I'm incarcerated and everything else like that. Not only that, you know, I mean, there's so many victims out there, it's crazy.
You know, I've hurt so many people. I don't know how remorseful you think I am. I mean, I do, I do, I do feel bad, you know what I'm saying, for the kids, for, for, you know, like I said, there's, there's many victims I've created, you know. And here's the best way to explain it. If you're not guilty, you get to tell the world what happened.
If you're guilty, you get to tell the world you're sorry. You know what I mean? That's basically what you're doing. Yes. At first, Jerry's public defender advised Jerry to plead not guilty and proceed to trial, but Jerry was offered a settlement. He pled guilty to second degree murder in exchange for the prosecutors dropping his other charges of first degree murder, kidnapping, assault, and armed criminal action.
At his court appearance in Warren County Circuit Court, Judge Jason Lamb sentenced Jerry to 30 years in prison, of which he must serve 85 percent before being eligible for parole. Trial also provided a platform for Amanda's family to voice their heartbreak. Through victim statements, the family expressed the pain they felt at losing a mother and daughter, and directed their anger towards Jerry for taking her life.
While there's nothing Jerry can say or do to bring Amanda back, He expresses a newfound sense of remorse for his actions and shows that he's shouldered his guilt over the past few years. Suddenly, my interview with Jerry is abruptly interrupted. Somebody in the prison is calling for the inmates to collect their meds early, and Jerry has to call me back later.
It's a jarring reminder of the prison world. which will be Jerry's reality for the next 25 years. Many times, Jerry's life has intersected with prison and he's a product of a broken justice system and has been caught in a pattern of reoffending. Could the next few years finally be the opportunity Jerry needs to start a fresh new chapter in his life?
Do meds? Yeah, actually. So a lot of people that's incarcerated take a lot of medication. And some of them have issues and some of them don't have issues, but, you know, there's a lot of people here that take a lot of medications, and not all of them are slight medications, neither, you know, some of them are health meds.
Do you see a lot of mental illness around you? Where I'm at right now, yes. So, I'm actually, at this point in time in my life, I'm actually in a program house, and I'm a DLA, which is Daily Living Assistant, and what I do is I help elderly, And people that can't take care of themselves. So I see a lot of disabled and I see a lot of insane.
So whenever you get to prison and basically you realize, you know, you're gonna do the next at least 25 years in there, right? Yeah, I gotta do 25 and a half before I'm eligible. Do you think you deserve to be out on the streets? You know, if you did math again, would you go off the handle? I mean, what do you think?
I am getting another chance, you know, in 25 and a half years, I will get another chance at the age of 57. When I go back out there, if I get a chance to go back out there, I mean, who's to say cancer or, you know, my health don't unravel. But if I do get another chance to go back out there, I am going to go back out there and do something different.
It's just crazy, you know, riding and playing with a gun and shooting somebody in the head and then throwing them off a cliff. And that's a crazy story, man. And now you're sitting in prison for half your life. Which is even crazier because really you spend a great deal of your life in prison as it is. So really your, most of your adult life is just marked by the system and a war to the state, you know?
I hope you can turn your life around in there, man. If you can get out. m*th is a terrible drug. It seems like it puts so many people in prison and just destroys everything. It's just a nasty drug, you know what I mean? Absolutely. So since we're on this, right, I'm going to be on this podcast, which, you know, if you can make a note of it, which I'm sure Amanda's family ain't going to hear that.
But, you know, I do give a shout out to her family, and I do apologize. You know, you can't really, what do you say when you kill somebody? What do you say to her family? You know, sorry, don't cut it. But, I think, I think, I'm sorry. I think you're right. There's not much you can say, but what you can do is just try to Do better and be a role model in prison, I guess, and then whenever you get out, be a role model in the streets.
I think that's one way to do it. Wouldn't you agree? Yeah. And believe it or not, her brother is actually here at this camp. I've actually met him because he knew who I was. You know, I had to kind of pull up on him and talk to him about it. You know, and I apologize to him as well, you know. Yeah, but I appreciate you talking with me and if you ever need something, give me a holler, but hope you do better.
I appreciate it, you have a good one, Toby. Alright, take it easy, buh bye.
On the next episode of Voices of a Killer If I could go back and change everything, I would. I kinda felt like they were outcast like I was. Did you think they were gonna kill you? Yeah, I really did. Did you think about calling the police? I couldn't. Did you call the police? Now, I wake up tossing and turning and kicking and it's just, I see blood and glints of metal and I hear screaming.
When you walked into that house, what did it feel like? It felt haunted.
That's a wrap on this episode of Voices of a Killer. I want to thank Jerry for sharing his story with us today. His ability to be open and honest is what makes this podcast so special. If you want to listen to these episodes weeks in advance, you can now do So by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/voices of a killer there you will get access to raw interviews, unseen news coverage, and new, new correspondence with the guests of voices of a killer.
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Thank you for tuning in. I'm your host, Toby, and we'll see you next time on Voices of a Killer.