At one time she wanted to be a teacher, her mother said. Theres no word yet if hell be tried a third time in Chambers murder. Over time the attention from the media started to trail off, the story had captured the attention of internet sleuths around the world. The last six weeks before she died, she told me 10 or 15 times, Everybody thinks Im snitching because you work for the police, her father told PEOPLE. Rumors that she sold marijuana and dated a gang member surged in the aftermath of her death, when Chambers life became subject to just as much intense scrutiny as the mystery of her death, which occurred at a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, an hour or so away from Courtland. Scan this QR code to download the app now. 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. I mean, hes as dangerous a criminal as Ive ever dealt with, Champion said, reports Jackson, Mississippi, TV news station WLBT. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Chambers had burns on about Tellis previously told investigators that he had been with Jessica Chambers for part of the night she died, authorities said. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Mystery Deepens in Case of Burned Mississippi Teen Jessica Chambers as Police Call for Witnesses Local police and agents from federal agencies are continuing to search for the attacker, who is believed to have set Chambers on fire. WebProsecutor John Champion warned jurors that they will see graphic photos of a burned Chambers and they will hear from about 35 witnesses. AP (Quinton Tellis, left, is accused of burning 19-year-old Jessica Chambers alive in her car.). His wife then ran down the street to tell Chambers' mother what had happened and they were all at the hospital in Memphis when she died. He also said that he saw a suspicious person in the area. An expert testified that they detected gasoline on a piece of clothing from the crime scene but wasnt able to detect the same substance on other items submitted to forensic analysis. Legal Expert Weighs In, Quinton Simon's Mother Allegedly Beat Toddler to Death with 'Object' After Using Drugs: Prosecutors, N.J. But we looked at her activities and everything that was going on and it just didnt go that way at all. Champion didnt suspectgang activity was to blame for Chambers death. All rights reserved. All posts must contain accurate, unbiased information and adhere to the rules found below. Will Turner, another firefighter, said that. Several first-responder witnesses called to the stand Wednesday said she appeared to say"Eric," but she was difficult to understand because of her charred mouth and the loudness of rescue equipment in the background. His Mother Is in Jail on Murder Charge, Ex-Teacher Faces Murder Trial After Family of 3 Including Teen Son Are Shot, Stabbed in Calif. Home, stubborn mystery that had everyone talking. , and that though he asked the man to leave several times, the man just gave him a blank stare. He asked Davis to note the tag number, presumably off the car. This is beyond murder, Jessicas father said then. For more on this heartbreaking case, stream Jessica Chambers: An ID Murder Mystery on discovery+ now. She died hours later at a Memphis hospital. They also considered that maybe Chambers and gotten herself in trouble with a local gang. Jessica Chambers horrific death rocked the nation. WebPhoto: Chambers Family First one jury, then a second, failed to reach a verdict on whether an accused man splashed fuel on Jessica Chambers and caused the 19-year-old former "The trail was going cold in Mississippi when he got locked up in Louisiana," she said, adding that Mississippi investigators got a break when Louisiana police called and notified them that they had someone in custody from their county. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! Jessica Chambers case: Burned teen's own words before death key What to Know About Jessica Chambers' Burning Death - People Given her state, she was unable to communicate clearly, but several first responders would later testify that they thought she had said Eric or Derrick when asked who had attacked her (via Investigative Discovery). The former cheerleader planned to be a nurse before she was burned alive in 2014. Tellis, 31, already has pleaded guilty and was sentenced for unauthorized use of a Chase Bank debit credit card belonging to Hsiao, reports The News Star. According to the plea deal outlined in court, Tellis admitted to using Hsiaos debit card without authorization to withdraw at least $1,000. According to Investigation Discovery, in 2019, Tellis was charged with a completely unrelated 2015 murder of University of Louisiana-Monroe graduate student Meing-Chen Hsaio. In the first day of trial for Quinton Tellis, now 29, first responder Cole Haley said he was so shaken by his encounter with the badly burned Jessica Chambers that he was traumatized for months. Eventually, the finger was pointed at Quentin Tellis, a gang member who investigators had been able to prove with phone records had been with Chambers the night of her murder. They also argued that Tellis deleted all of his messages with Chambers after she died. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. Her father, Ben Quinton Tellis was tried twice for her murder, each ending in a mistrial with a hung jury. The judge in the case declared a mistrial, opening the door for prosecutors to try Tellis a second time on the murder charge. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. Jessica Chambers case: Teen burned alive named killer before Everyones in the same boat.. Jessica Chambers horrific death rocked the nation. Legal analyst Beth Karas, who worked in the New York District Attorney's office, spoke to Crimefeed about the case. Neither convicted nor cleared, the suspect, Quinton Tellis, now sits in jail awaiting trial for an unrelated murder in neighboring Louisiana. Chambers had burns on about 93 percent of her body when she was found. Buzzfeed got the story, and it seemed like the entire internet was trying to answer the question: Who set Jessica Chambers on fire? In a written statementto investigators hours after the crime, Haley said Chambers told him that someone named "Eric" had set her on fire. Jessica According to Buzzfeed, Chambers' father's job at the Sheriff's department meant that he was notified. Tellis faces another murder indictment in Louisiana, where he's accused in the torture death of Meing-Chen Hsiao, a 34-year-old Taiwanese graduate student at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. The horrific circumstances surrounding the former high school cheerleader's death garnered national attention. Tellis, who graduated from the same high school as Chambers,was in Batesville buying a pre-paid debit card for his girlfriend in Louisiana at the time Chambers was attacked, Palmer said. In the Chambers case, Tellis emerged as a suspect after investigators learned that he and Chambers were recent acquaintances in small-town Courtland, Mississippi, population 500. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Chambers was found walking on the road wearing only underwear in 40 degree temperatures when a passing motorist spotted her shortly after 8 p.m., Champion said. Chambers and Tellis rode around in her car for a while that morning before Chambers dropped off Tellis at his house and she went home to take a nap, the prosecutor said. If Chambers had indeed named her assailant as Tellis defense attorney, Darla Palmer, argued during his first trial then Tellis could not have been involved, since no one knew him as Eric or Derek.. Plus: Nancy Pelosis husband attacked by intruder; 8 people dead in Oklahoma murder-suicide; Man accused of burying 6-year-old alive; Delivery driver pleads guilty to murdering runner. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. Market data provided by Factset. What the jury doesn't know, at least not yet: By July 2016, Tellis was charged with first-degree murder in another case, theJuly 29, 2015,death of Meing-Chen Hsiao, 34, of Taiwan. 2023 FOX Television Stations, Car crashes into building after hitting a path of vehicles in Strawberry Mansion, police say, Police investigate shooting on I-95 in South Philadelphia that injured 1, Families voice concerns about asbestos in Philadelphia schools: 'It's scary', 3 people injured, one critically in South Philadelphia triple shooting, police say, Delaware County teen honored with award and surprise party for standing up to bullies at school. They quickly tended to her as best they could and tried to gather information from her. Tellis is a suspect in a second killing: The torture and murder of Meing-Chen Hsiao, an international graduate student at the University of Louisiana in Monroe, in 2015. Working-class Courtland, Mississippi, population 500, is not a town with deep divisions that typically hoards its secrets. He said Tellis repeatedly lied to investigators about spending time with her in the hours before she was found. But a defense attorney said Jessica Chambers told firefighters who found her near her burning car that a man named Eric set her on fire - not the person charged with her murder, Quinton Tellis. But in her last moments, Chambers was able to name someone, as belabored as her speech may have been. Chambers then picked up Tellis at about 5:30 p.m. and they went to a fast food restaurant, Champion said. He also said that he saw a suspicious person in the area. (AP) - The night a 19-year-old Mississippi woman was burned to death, she and her killer had sex in her car and he thought he had suffocated her before he torched her vehicle with her inside, a prosecutor said Tuesday in an opening statement, presenting his theory of what led to the gruesome slaying. The trial ended in a hung jury, as did a second attempt to convict Tellis in 2018. Erin Barnhart said Chambers was burned over most of her body except her groin, buttocks, back of upper thighs, and bottoms of her feet. Chambers and Tellis rode around in her car for a while that morning before Chambers dropped off Tellis at his house and she went home to take a nap, the prosecutor said. Photo by: Warner Bros. And she had black all over her face. But while Chambers family hopes that a third trial in the Chambers case may yet deliver the justice they seek, the Mississippi prosecutor, John Champion, tells PEOPLE that hes not rushing forward. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. WebThe woman was 19-year-old, Jessica Chambers. WebProsecutor John Champion told jurors that they will see graphic photos of a burned Chambers and they will hear from about 35 witnesses. The Bizarre Case Of The Jessica Chambers Murder. Burned alive: Sight of Jessica Chambers traumatizes first responder Jessica was full of life and Jessica was stubborn as a mule, her mom LisaChambers said. Karas said that the judge concluded that any potential prosecutorial misconduct by Champion "was not prejudicial" to Tellis. "She didn't say any other name.". More than 93 percent of her body wasbadlyburned. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. But Karas said that for her, the murder is most memorable due to the horrific nature of the crime. He also said that Tellis had repeatedly asked Chambers for sex, and she had told him no. When authorities accused Tellis of Jessicas murder in 2016, they discovered him already in jail charged with the unlawful use of a credit card belonging to a college student who was stabbed to death in Louisiana in August 2015. Authorities said Chambers was soaked in fuel in her car on a rural road, set on fire and then stumbled through a roadside ditch before she was spotted by a passing motorist who called 911. NYPD Detective Identifies Suspect In Cold-Case Murder Of Pregnant Woman Who Died In Front Of Son, ID Debuts Official Trailer For Explosive New Docuseries 'The Curious Case Of Natalia Grace', An Indiana Family Still Wants Answers In A Young Mans Mysterious Death, Beloved Detroit Neurosurgeon Found Murdered In His Home, Man Fascinated With Serial Killers, Dead Bodies Convicted Of Killing Beauty School Classmate, Former Idaho State Trooper Charged With Murder Of His Wife, How A Florida Serial Rapist Became The First Person In The United States To Be Convicted By DNA Evidence, An Upstate New York Child Is Still Missing With No Arrests In The Case, Texas Cheerleaders Shot After Mistakenly Getting In The Wrong Car, Many Furious As Oklahoma Death Row Inmate Set To Be Executed In May. The Bizarre Case Of The Jessica Chambers Murder - Grunge Yet the apparent disconnect over the name loomed large after Tellis was charged with her murder. Police believe that the 34-year-old had been tortured and stabbed more than 30 times, according to KNOE-TV, in order to force her to reveal the PIN code to her debit card. Jessica Chambers When I had seen him, the first thought I had was I want to hurt him, Eric M. Smith recently said of his victim, Derrick Robie. He later was charged with murdering that student, 34-year-old Meing-Chen Hsiao. Daniel Cole, director of Panola County (MS) Emergency Operations, read part of his report out, that said he saw a suspicious person an older black male noting the tag number.. The jury is being sequestered and spectators are being screened by metal detectors before entering the courtroom. In Mississippi, Chambers' best friend, Kesha Myers, told jurors Tuesday that Chambers was "selling drugs every day.". Lisa Lynne Chambers, mother of Jessica Chambers, has died On December 6, 2014, a 19-year-old cheerleader named Jessica Chambers was set on fire in the small town of Courtland, Mississippi. Intelligence Analyst Paul Rowlett testified about Chambers' and Tellis phone data, and claimed that phone data put Chambers and Tellis together at the same location just before, or possibly even during, Chambers murder. He was contacted the night Chambers was burned and said she had third-degree burns over 90 percent of her body. Her car keys were later found nearby, and they had Tellis' DNA on them, Champion said. "Horrific burns," Champion said. Armchair detectives took to social media and sleuthed various "suspects" in the town. Tellis was also indicted in May 2019 in Monroe, Louisiana, in the death of a University of Louisiana Monroe college exchange student in July 2015. The alleged Eric/Derrick piece of information became a major point of contention when a suspect whose name wasn't Eric or Derrick was put on trial. Champion said cellphone records show that Chambers and Tellis - who had met about two weeks before her death and had become friends - were together twice on the day she was burned. On Thursday morning, jurors will visit the site of the fire, M&M Grocery where security camera footage last recorded Chambers that evening and Tellis' home nearby, said Major Barry Thompson,lead investigator for the Panola County Sheriff's Department. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. The tragic death of 19-year-old Jessica Chambers has been a topic of discussion across the nation after the teen was found ablaze near her vehicle. In the aftermath police questioned not only Jessicas former boyfriends but also convicted drug dealers who might have had a connection to her. However, according to Buzzfeed, the case has attracted the attention of web sleuths who comb through social media looking for any clue that investigators may have missed and develop their own, oftentimes outlandish theories about who really killed Jessica Chambers. Photo by: Warner The first firefighters arriving on the scene saw Chambers' car on fire and noted that while there was an inferno raging inside the car, the trunk and engine compartment didn't seem to have as much damage to them (via Clarion Ledger). The shocking, fiery murder of a former cheerleader is about to be re-litigated in court. While her keys were missing the night Jessica Chambers was found near her burning car, they would later be found down the route, a few hundred yards away from the crime scene, also on Herron Road. About 20,000 telephone numbers were analyzed in the investigation. Police found her walking on the side of a rural road near her burning car around 8 p.m. on December 6, 2014. WebJessica Chambers, 19, was found on a back road Dec. 6, 2014, in the small town of Courtland with burns over almost her entire body. Investigators found burned items at the crime scene, including parts of a cell phone. Her friend Lakesha Meyer claimed that Chambers sold marijuana. Volunteer firefighter Brandie Davis testified during the trial that he also heard the name Eric when he asked Chambers who burned her. WebChambers, a former high school cheerleader, was wearing nothing but underwear when she was found along a rural Mississippi road next to her burning vehicle. Jessica Chambers Someone meant to cause her great pain.. Jessica Chambers Shes never seen a color in a person.Chambers had black friends and black boyfriends, including boyfriend Travis Sanford who was incarcerated at the time of Chambers killing. Chambers mother said she was always smiling and she had the littlest body, she recalled, adding that her daughter loved making the I love you hand sign. "Horrific pain.". An undated photo of Jessica Chambers and her father. Haley and two other firefighters had responded to a truck driver's call about a car fire Dec. 6, 2014, on Herron Road just outside Courtland, Miss. "Horrific pain.". His next hearing on the murder case is Feb. 18; a trial date has not yet been scheduled. WebJessica Chambers was just 19 when she was burned alive. Discovery, Inc. or its subsidiaries and affiliates. Despite suffering from smoke inhalation and having been severely burned on almost her entire body, Chambers managed to escape. This photo, provided by Fox affiliate WHBQ, shows 19-year-old Jessica Chambers of Panola County, Miss. Police also had another tantalizing clue: Several first-responders reported hearing Jessica utter a name that sounded like Eric or Derek, possibly steering them toward her attacker. Previously, Tellis had been in the parish jail accused of using Hsiao's debit card three times after her death. Murder Case of Burned Mississippi Teen One of Chamber's ex-boyfriends, Bryan Rudd, was ruled out as a suspect by investigators early on in the investigation as he had been living in Iowa at the time, a move he had made to get out of Courtland after Chambers broke up with him. Tellis later acknowledged they were together in the evening, saying he met her to sell her marijuana and had sex with her in her car, Champion said. Police found her walkingon the side of a rural roadnear her burning cararound 8 p.m. on December 6, 2014. The trial is happening in the Panola County seat here less than 10 miles from the scene of the crime. Im just going to wait and see what happens in Louisiana, he says. "I was face to face with her, and you could barely understand her," he said. So its very important that either Louisiana get him convicted or we get him convicted., He tells PEOPLE: I just left it with them that we would meet after the Louisiana trial., The Twists & Turns After 19-Year-Old Was Burned to Death: What to Know About Murder of Jessica Chambers, Second Mistrial Declared in Ex-Cheerleaders Murder as Suspect Now Faces Trial in Another Death, Cold Cases Heat Up: How Advances in DNA Technology Are Helping to Bring Justice for Victims, Suspect in Death of Pregnant Mom Found Next to Car with Son Inside Was Recently Acquitted of Unrelated Murder, Man Charged in Rape of Slain LSU Student Madison Brooks Faces New Rape Charge in Separate Case, Will Bryan Kohberger Face Death Penalty if Convicted of Idaho Murders? All rights reserved. According to the obituary, Lisa Chambers leaves behind three siblings, two children, and three grandchildren. "She said 'Eric set me on fire,'" Palmer said. Jurors in that first 2017 trial could not reach a decision on his guilt or innocence an outcome repeated again in 2018 when the second jury, again convened by Judge Gerald Chatham, said it, too, was stuck. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. This is breaking my heart. First one jury, then a second, failed to reach a verdict on whether an accused man splashed fuel on Jessica Chambers and caused the 19-year-old former high school cheerleader to die by setting her on fire on a rural Mississippi road in 2014. Mom Convicted of Murdering Toddler Because He Was 'Obstacle' to Her Extramarital Affair, Man Wrongfully Convicted of New Orleans Rape Freed After 36 Years in Jail, Emmett Till Was Lynched, and His Family Was Denied Justice: All About the Murder that Shocked the Nation, Man Found Guilty of 1982 Ax Murder of His Wife After the Case Went Unsolved for Nearly 40 Years. Jessica Chambers' burn injuries, suspects phone in spotlight According to Buzzfeed, Jessica left home at 5 p.m. on the night of the murder, telling her mother that she was going to make a trip to a gas station nearby. The horrific circumstances surrounding the former high school cheerleader's death garnered national attention. Logically, someone might have taken the keys from the crime scene to later discard them but who? But, at around the age of16, she stopped wanting to be a cheerleader. When she was cheering, she knew she looked good, Berdain told PEOPLE for a 2016 cover story. I will leave no stone unturned in my pursuit of truth, Ashley Henley wrote on social media weeks before she was fatally shot. Champion said Tellis first told investigators he only saw Chambers on the morning of her death. The Panola County Sheriffs Lt. Edward Dickson confirmed in his testimony that he found a phone belonging to Chambers, and some burned clothing. Discovery, Inc. (Screenshot from ID's "Jessica Chambers: An ID Murder Mystery"), Warner Bros. Jessica Chambers murder trial: Nurse said burns covered 93 Tellis later acknowledged they were together in the evening, saying he met her to sell her marijuana and had sex with her in her car, Champion said. The woman was 19-year-old, Jessica Chambers. The shocking mystery of the death of Jessica Chambers, the Mississippi teenager who was found by first responders on a highway with burns on more than 93 percent of her body on December 6, 2014, is about to be revisited in a trial this September and during Oxygens Unspeakable Crime: The Killing of Jessica Chambers on September 15 at 7/6c. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. In his opening statement, Champion acknowledged that the first responders did hear her say the name "Eric" or "Derek." Though Tellis admitted using Hsiaos credit card, he has pleaded not guilty to her slaying. Evaristo Salas Jr. says that lies have kept him in prison and what happened in his case was easily swept under the rug.. ". The prosecutor also said Tellis' alibi was fabricated. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, Pool). Jessica Chambers Prosecutors believe that Tellis intentionally went to the store after Chambers' attack, creating an alibi for himself. In the first episode of The Killing of Jessica Chambers,Ashunta Winfield, Chambers friend and neighbor said that Jessica loved everybody. Haley told the seven-man, five-woman jury that he knew Chambers before that night, but the two were not friends. Her father, Ben Chambers, said Jessica and her vehicle were burning for at least 30 minutes before the fire department reached them. Surveillance video from the gas station shows that Chambers was at the gas station (via Acton News 5). Aiden Fucci allegedly told people he was going to kill someone by taking them in the woods and stabbing them, authorities said. He says he has told Chambers family that the outcome in Louisiana likely will dictate his next move. Man indicted in teen's fiery 2014 death still awaiting trial, Suspect pleads not guilty in fiery death of 19-year-old woman, Suspect in torching death of Miss. Prosecutors argued at trial that Tellis strangled Jessica after they eventually did have sex, and then he set the blaze believing she was already dead. By all accounts, Chambers suffered an agonizing death: Firefighters responding to a report of a torched car saw her walking toward them, wearing only her underwear and critically burned over 93 percent of her body. Her mother Lisa said inOxygen'supcoming docu-seriesUnspeakable Crime: The Killing of Jessica Chambers,that when she thinks of her daughter she thinks of her blue eyes. A place for forensic students, medical examiners, morticians and other morbidly interested individuals to respectfully discuss content relevant to a crime scene.