342: Jassy Correia

that would shape the city for generations. By February of twenty to nineteen, Boston Seaport District had transformed from industrial waterfront into one of the city's trendiest areas. Glass walled restaurants and upscale night clubs drew crowds every weekend. Young professionals and college students alike flooded the street after dark, seeking escape in the pulsing music and dim lights of establishments such as Venue. Venue was exactly the kind of

place people went through to forget their troubles. On the night of the twenty third of February twenty nineteen, the temperature had dropped to the low thirties. It was cold enough that your breath missed in the air, cold enough that you wanted to get inside, get warm. Get somewhere safe. It was just after two a m. When the nightclub stores opened and guests filled out on to Tremont Street. The music had stopped, the lights had come up. Everybody

was heading home. Among the crowd was a young woman in an orange jumpsuit and a denim jacket. She had no shoes. She was just barefoot on the freezing pavement. She was alone now, but she hadn't meant to be. There was an uber parked at the curb, its interior light glowing. The young woman tapped on the window, then climbed into the front passenger seat, but moments later, the door flung open. The woman fell from the car onto the sidewalk, landing hard on the coal concrete. There was

a man standing nearby. He was watching. Jasse Corea was born in Prayer, the capital city of Cape Verd, on the twenty sixth February nineteen ninety six. The small island nation off the coast of West Africa was where her story begun, but it wouldn't be where she would grow up. When Jassy was just three years old, she emigrated to the United States with her father, settling in Dorchesterhire in Massachusetts. Her father had wanted a better future for his daughter.

He looked at their life in Cape verd and then with the promise of America, and he had made a choice, the kind of choice that parents make when they believe impossibility over certainty. The United States he felt, offered opportunity. Jassie's mother lived in Portugal, and she didn't see her daughter very often. Dorchester became Jassy's home. There she grew up surrounded by a large, loving family, including Anne's uncles

and cousins, who adored her. The close knit Cape Verdon community in Boston provided a bridge between two worlds, allowing Jassie to maintain her cultural routes while building a new life in America. She spoke Portuguese at home English at school. She belonged to both laces, in neither the way so many immigrant children do. Jassy was funny and bright, with a passion for two things that brought her joy, dancing and photography. Friend said that she was outgoing, the kind

of perison who could get along with anybody. She had this ability to make people laugh, even at their worst moments. Her loved ones all said that there was something magnetic about her and energy that could draw just about anybody in When Jassie walked in their room, people noticed. In December of two thousand and sixteen, when she was twenty years old, Jassi gave birth to a girl she named

Gabriella Gabby for short. Mother had transformed her. Those who knew her described Jassie as a devoted mother, somebody who treasured every moment with her daughter. She cherished the time she spent with her friends and family, and the simple afternoons at the park with Gabby. These weren't grand moments, they were ordinary, but to Jassie they were precious. Life for Jassie, however, had been easy. Gabby's father, Miguel Gastro,

was violent. On the twenty eighth of January twenty eighteen, Jassie sent a text message to his mother which read, you need to help me. Miguel won't let me leave. Don't call him, He'll kill me. She attached a photograph of herself. What Castro's mother saw on that image was almost unrecognizable. Jassie had two black eyes and blood tinged tears were running down her face. Her nose was completely distorted, and her mouth was so swollen it wouldn't close. This

was her son's work. She immediately called police. Officers responded to Castro's home and found Jassie hiding under the basement stairs. They found blood all over the home, blood spattered on Castro's clothing. He had punched Jassie so hard he had broken her nose and fractured her orbital bone. The police report read, in part, her injuries were so extensive that

somebody who knew her most likely wouldn't recognize her. Castro was arrested and charged with mayhem, the intentional disfigurement of another person, as well as multiple counts of assault and kidnapping. He was eventually convicted and sentenced to four and a half years in prison, followed by three years of probation. That conviction meant that Jassie was finally free. By early twenty nineteen, she was twenty two years old and living in an emergency shelter in Lynne with her two year

old daughter. If hadn't turned out for Jassie the way she had expected, the path had been harder, darker than anything she imagined as a girl in Dorchester. But with Castro locked away, Jossie was fighting for something better. She was working as a hostess at Del Frisco's restaurant in the Seaport neighborhood of Boston. It was quite a commute from Lynne, but Jassi made it work. She had big dreams and plans, but more import she had dreams for

Gabby's future. She was working with the social worker mapping out the next steps, Determined to create a safe and loving home for her daughter. Jassie kept the notepad on the front she'd written in careful letters, life is my favorite adventure. Inside she had made lists including apply for jobs in person, go see family, take the test at least once. But mixed in with the two items were words of encouragement, messages to herself remind us of her

own strength. You've got this, you can do it. Jassy was optimistic. After everything she had endured, the violence, the fear, the nights spent hiding, she still believed in better days ahead. She still had hope. She had a job interview lined up for the twenty fifth of February, the day before her twenty third birthday, but Jassy would never make it to that interview. She wouldn't make it to her birthday either. It was cold on the night of the twenty third

of February twenty nineteen. Jassy's birthday was just three days away, but since it fell on a weekday, she made plans to celebrate that Saturday night. Instead, she and a friend from Western Massachusetts, Agia, were heading out in Boston. Jassi's saught her was staying with her grandmother for the weekend. It was a rare night off, a chance to be twenty two, not just a mother fighting her way out of a shelter. To start the night, Jassi headed to

the apartment of her friend Neah, lived in Dorchester. Earlier that day, they'd gone shopping for an outfit. Jassi had picked out an orange jumpsuit, a denim jacket with wings embroidered on the back, and black high heeled shoes. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. The plan was simple, celebrate, stay over at nee a is A park, then collect Gabby. The next morning, another friend, Reggie, drove Asia, Jassie,

and Nea to downtown Boston. They parked in a garage on Tremont Street, then walked one block to Venue, which was a popular nightclub. The line stretched her on the block by the time they made it inside It was already twelve forty a m. It was crowded, The music was loud, the kind that vibrates in your chest. The small group of friends claimed a corner of the bar. They shared a bottle of champagne and had a couple of shots of tequila. Then the women headed out onto

the dance floor. Reggie stayed behind at the bar for a while. Everything seemed fine, normal, just friends celebrating, but something in the dynamic shifted. Nea had suddenly become angry and aggressive. Her mood had turned dark in a way that nobody could explain. She would later say she believed that her drink had been spiked, that the way she had been acting wasn't normal, wasn't her, But in the

moment there was no explanation, just anger. When venue closed to a m, the group headed out on to the street and started walking towards the parking garage. The cold hit them immediately. The temperature had dropped. Nea was still in a combative mood. She shoved Jessie once, then again. After the first push, Jasie took off her high heels

Eedga picked them up, holding them as they walked. Jassy was trying to calm Nae down, speaking to her softly, the way you might talk to somebody who's not quite themselves. Nea was acting irrational on the stable EDGEA told Jassie to leave Nea behind to come with her and Reggie back to the car, but Jassie refused. She said she wouldn't leave her friend behind. Even angry, even aggressive, Nea was still her friend. Jessy wasn't the kind of person

who abandoned people. But it was late. Everybody else was tired, cold, and ready to go home. Aga asked Jassie how they would get back to Nia's apartment. Jassie said they would take an uber. At that point, Asia and Reggie left, walking back towards the garage. They left Jassie and Nea on the street, two women, one in an aggressive state, one barefoot, trying to be a good friend. It was

the last time they would ever see Jassie alive. The next morning, Jesssie never arrived to pick up her daughter. Her family started calling her on to her friends. They soon learned that she had never made it back to Nia's apartment. Nie had made it home, She remembered that much. She said that she and Jassie had split up after Agia and Reggie left them on the street. She had assumed that after the argument, Jassi had just gone back home, back to Lynn, back to the shelter, But Jassie hadn't

arrived at the shelter. She was missing. Her friends and family called her phone over and over, but it went straight to voicemail. The next day, Jassy never showed up for her shift at Del Frisco's. This wasn't like her. Jassie needed that job. She wouldn't just skip work. She wouldn't disappear without telling anybody, especially not when Gabby was waiting for her. Her father then called police to report his daughter missing. Somewhere in Boston, Jassi Corea had vanished.

After Jassy was reported missing, detectives immediately spoke with her friends. They explained what had happened that night, Nea becoming angry, the shoving, Jassie staying behind with her friend even as the others left, But what happened after that nobody knew. Nea couldn't remember, she'd been too drunk, so detectives turned to surveillance footage in the area. The footage showed exactly

what Ega and Reggie had described. It showed them leaving Jassie and Nea on the street walking back towards the parking garage. They had assumed that Na and Jassie stayed together after they left, but that wasn't what happened. Shortly after Ega and Reggie disappeared from view, Nea walked off in another direction, away from Jassie, away from anybody who might have helped. Jassy was left alone on the sidewalk, intoxicated, wearing a denim jacket no shoes, the cold pavement beneath

her feet. There happened to be an Uber driver park nearby, waiting for Uber Exil customers. The surveillance footage showed Jassie tapping on his window, then climbing into the front passenger seat, but moments later, the door flung open, Jassie fell from the car on to the sidewalk. Detectives were able to track the Uber driver down. He told them that when Jasie climbed in, she tried to hire him through the Uber app, but the app wouldn't have loyed it, something

about the ride request not going through. Besides, he explained he was only looking for Uber Excel customers. He could make more money from them, so he turned Jassie away, but the surveillance footage showed something else. There was a man standing nearby as all of this unfolded. He was watching Jassie. When she fell to the ground, he approached. He helped her back up. The camera captured him holding

her hands, talking to her. Jassi looked around, turning her head as if she was searching for somebody, looking for Nea, perhaps, but Nea was already gone. Jassy in the unfamiliar man, then headed off down Tremont Street together. Further down the block, Jassie climbed on to his back. He carried her piggyback style, with her arms straped over his should. They continued walking before stopping near the Animal Rescue League. There was a car park there. The man unlocked it. He and Jassie

climbed inside, then they drove away. It was three fifteen a m. Detectives released a description of the vehicle in question. It was a redness and altema. The footage was greeny pixelated when they tried to zoom in, but they could just about make out what the man looked like. Bronze skin, dark hair, dark stubble. He appeared to be wearing jeans and a dark jacket. Armed with this description, detectives made their wed a Venue, the club where Jassie had spent

the night. They wondered whether the man had been inside. It was the closest nightclub to de remonstrate. It seemed plausible likely even that he'd been there. Thankfully, venue took photographs of IDs presented when guests centered the club. It was standard procedure. Detectives went through each and every one until they found somebody that stood out. Lewis Dake Holman the third. He was thirty two years old and from

Providence in Rhode Island. He had a master's degree in physics from California State University, and he worked as a systems engineer at Raytheon in Waltham, Massachusetts, a company that built miss Island defense systems. On paper, he was educated employed stable. Detectives conducted a record check to see if Coman owned a vehicle that matched the one that Jassi had been seen climbing into, but he had no vehicles registered to him. Still, detectives continued looking at him as

a person of interest. He looked far too similar to the man on the surveillance footage. The resemblance was undeniable. Detectives then reached out to police and Providence and asked them to conduct a welfare check at Coleman's apartment on Chestnut Street. Officers knocked on the door, nobody answered. The next morning, detectives decided to make the trip to Providence themselves. They too knocked, but nobody answered. But by now detectives

had probable cause. They kicked the apartment door down. There was nobody inside. As soon as they entered, they felt a chill. Even though it was snowing outside. The windows were wide open, cold air was pouring into the apartment. Something was off. Detectives searched the apartment and noticed some peculiarities. The shower curtain was missing, a cushion from the sofa was gone. There were two packages of hooded coverall sitting out,

two respiratory masks in a dumpster. Outside, they found white trash backs, a bag containing plastic sheets, men's chains with bleach stains, a belt, a white nie long hooded coverall, an empty box of baking soda, dock tape packaging. He's weren't the belongings of an innocent man, they thought. Detectives began scoring surveillance footage from the interior exterior of the apartment complex. They found Coman on camera on the twenty fourth of February. It was about four am when he

pulled into the parking lot. He locked the car and headed up to his apartment, but he didn't stay for long. Minutes later, he was seen going back down to the car, This time he was carrying a white comforter. He spent some time maneuvering the car around in the parking lot repositioning it. Then he was seen carrying a body. She had long hair and she was limp. She was dressed in an orange jumpsuit, but the top half had come down,

exposing her breasts. It looked like Jassie. Coleman entered the lobby and put the woman on the floor, then dragged her over to the elevator. Her body moved like a dead weight. The camera in the sixth floor hallway showed Coleman dragging her towards his apartment, number six oh two. The timestamp read four to twenty three am. Over the next few days, surveillance showed Coleman making trips in and out of the building. He was seeing carrying Walmart bags

into the apartment. Then on the night of the twenty seventh, he appeared with a large blue suitcase. Shortly after one am. The next morning, he was recorded dragging that same suitcase to the elevator and out to his car. It appeared heavy the way he moved with it. He made several additional trips, more bags, boxes, a computer tar Then at four am he drove off. Detectives working convinced that Coleman had killed Jassie, brought her body to his apartment, and

then placed her in that suitcase. They released a photograph of Coleman, along with the photograph of his vehicle in the surveillance footage. They asked him to come forward. They also asked if anybody knew anything about his whereabouts to reach out immediately. Jassie was still missing. Detectives didn't know if she was still with Coleman, or whether he had left her somewhere, dumped her body, or worse. As the search continued, Jassy's father, Walking pleaded for information. His voice

broke as he said, I need my daughter back. I want to see my daughter. The situation is really bad. He was a man who brought a three year old daughter to America. For a better life, who had worked in sacrifice so that she could have opportunities that he never had. Now he was begging strangers to help him find her body. Here's something that most of us don't realize.

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to Qualia for sponsoring this episode. It wasn't long before detectives discovered that Coleman's car had on Star, a vehicle tracking system they had the company activated on an emergency basis. This allowed detectives to see live location information for the vehicle. On the twenty eighth, they learned that it was traveling near Wilmington in Delaware. They sent this information to local officers who were immediately dispatched to search for the vehicle. It was just after two pm when the car was

spotted driving along Interstate ninety five. Trooper Hassan Hallis saw the car as it merged onto the highway. He followed it down the interstate, keeping his distance in radio four assistants. Then he turned on his lights. The car slowed down and pulled over at the side of the off ramp. By now more officers had arrived. They approached the driver's side of the vehicle with their guns drawn. In the driver's seat was Lewis Coleman. He looked calm. An officer

asked if anybody else was in the vehicle. Coleman responded, She's in the trunk. Coleman was handcuffed and placed into the back of a patrol vehicle. The officers then turned their attention to the car. They slowly opened it up. Lying in the trunk was a blue suitcase, the same one s on the surveillance footage, the one that Coleman had dragged out of his apartment in the early morning ours They zipped it. Inside was the cushion cover that

had been missing from the sofa in Coleman's apartment. Another layer another barrier between what he'd done and the world. They unzipped that stuffed inside, folded into a fatal position, was Jassie. She was bond with duct tape. She was covered in white powder baking soda they would later determine used in a futile attempt to mask decomposition. Her face was bruised and caked in blood. The officers stepped back. Some of them had children, daughters. This was someone's daughter.

The road was closed off as crime scene investigators and detectives descended on the scene. Traffic backed up for miles as officers worked carefully methodically to preserve the evidence. Jasse's body was carefully removed and then transported to the medical Examiner's office. Here it was discovered that her head and torso were covered in bruises, showing that she had been beaten before she was strangled to death. The autopsy also revealed mail DNA in her vagina and wrecked them at

DNA came back as a match to Lewis Coleman. Coleman was booked at the Delaware State Police troop to barracks and placed into a holding cell. One of the guards noticed a large bandage on the right side of his face. He asked Coleman if it needed to be looked at. Coleman responded, it's from the girl. After the tragic up the Jassey's family gathered at one of their homes. The news had traveled fast. Her cousin carried the pain and spoke to reporters through tears and said she was a mother,

She was brave, she was strong. She did not deserve this. She went out to celebrate her birthday and never returned home. We want justice for her death. Somewhere in that gathering was two year old Gabby, too young to understand why her mother wasn't coming back home, too young to know that the man who took her had been caught. The family set up a gofund made a help care for Gabby, and within days it reached over one hundred and fifty

thousand dollars. Strangers from across the country donated. They'd seen Jassie's face on the news, they heard her story. They wanted to help the little girl who would now grow up without her mother. Venue, the nightclub where Jassie had spent her last hours dancing with friends, donated two thousand, five hundred dollars. Coleman's vehicle was impounded so that it could be examined more closely. Inside the trunk, officers also discovered Coleman's computer tor the same one seen in the

surveillance footage, carried out his apartment alongside the suitcase. When the hard drive was analyzed, detectives found a digital trail of his intentions. Between the twenty fourth and twenty seven of the February Coleman had conducted a series of searches. He had searched for whether a body could fit in a suitcase, how to pull teeth that aren't loose, turkey basters and pie pets, how to embalm a body. And these weren't the searches of someone panicking. These were the

searches of someone planning. There were also recently purchased items in the trunk, including pruning shears, pliers, a gas container, and a lighter. The vehicle itself showed signs of a violent struggle. There were two spider cracks near the top of the passenger side of the windshield. It looked as though somebody had kicked the windshield with the heels of both feet. Jassy had fought back the windshield was swabbed

in DNA from both Jassi and Coleman came back. Their DNA was also discovered on swabs taken from the interior of the front passenger door. Jassy had fought for her life in that car. Detectives were able to piece together Coleman's movements and activity from that night. He had been in venue as well. He had arrived around twenty minutes after Jassie and her friends. At one point they were

so close they could have actually touched shoulders. While in the club, Coleman had started talking with a young woman named Lorna. As a near closing time, Coleman and Lorna were heading towards the restroom together, but they were intercepted by Lorna's brother. His sister was drunk. He was protecting her. He didn't know this man, and he didn't want her going anywhere with him alone. It was instinct, the kind of protective instinct that saves lives. Coleman and Lorna had

exchanged phone numbers before her brother led her away. Coleman was in the lobby texting Lorna when he learned that she had already left with her brother. Surveillance captured him outside. After that, he headed down towards Tremont Street, where Jassy was. Surveillance captured him standing beside the uber as Jasie was pushed out onto the pavement. He leaned over and helped her up. He probably seemed kind. Then they headed to his car. Lorna's brother had possibly saved his sister's life

that night. He just didn't know it, but Jassy had no one. All of her friends had left her alone. In the hours after Coleman killed Jassie, he was texting Lorna. He told her that he was about to catch a flight back to California. The reality was that he knew he was going to be occupied figuring out what to do with Jase's body. He said that he would text her when he was back in Massachusetts. Lorna asked, you live in Cali before riding, definitely hit me up and

wake him meet up. Coleman replied, yeah, sounds like a plan, followed by a smiley face. After a couple of messages back and forth, Laurna then texted, you were too good to be true. Of course I would mate a guy who doesn't live here. Luis Coleman was charged with kidnapping resulting in death and was ordered to be extradited back

to Rhode Island. The charges were filed by federal prosecutors since Coleman had traveled across state lines with Jassie's body, that meant that if he were convicted, he would be facing the death penalty. He was ordered to be held without bail, and he pleaded not guilty. After the charges were announced, Suffolk District Attorney Rachel Rawlins said Jassy was not in the wrong place at the wrong time. She was right where every woman has a right to be

celebrating her birthday on a night out with friends. Let's not fall into a discussion about whether we should walk home alone or how many people we should call when we're leaving the club. She said that of anything, women should be reminding the men in their lives that violence against women isn't a women's issue. She continued steering, it's a problem that men take responsibility for in their lives, in their sons lives, and in their social lives with

friends and colleagues. Her message was clear, this wasn't about Jassei making mistake, This was about Coleman making a choice. Coleman's monkshop was shared across the media in the wake of his arrest. When Amber Hersey Smith saw the photograph of Coleman, she thought he looked familiar, disturbingly familiar. In two thousand and fourteen, her friend Ashley Milith was found half buried in the dirt on a wooded walking trail in Brockton. She was buried on top of the skeletal

remains of fifty one year old Linda Schufeldt. Detectives at the time believed that both women had been killed by the same man. Unknown mail DNA was discovered on both bodies, and it had come from the same man who had committed at least three violent rapes in October and November of two thousand and thirteen and in January two thousand and fourteen. In those cases, the rapist had picked up vulnerable women, violently beaten them, and then dumped them at

the side of the road. After Coleman's mugshot appeared online, Amber stared at it for several moments. She thought that it looked remarkably similar to the Parabon Nanolabs DNA fine typing sketch of the man who had killed her friend Ashley and Linda and committed the rapes. They had predicted that the suspect skin was brawn or light brown with brawn or black hair. They'd released the sketch back in March of two thousand and seventeen, hoping that somebody could

identify him, but nobody had come forward. Amber remarked when Ashley's case first came out, they said to look out for a normal looking man. He preys on vulnerable girls. Ashley, the other victim from Ashley's case, and Jassie were all young and vulnerable. Beth Stone, a spokeswoman for Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz, announced that they were going to look into the case and whether Coleman could have been responsible.

While that was being investigated, more than one hundred people huddled together in the cold in Dorchester on the eighth of March. They were there to honor Jassie. Friends, family, and strangers alike, held white candles wrapped in paper and spoke about happier times, about the girl who made everybody laugh, the devoted mother, the friend who wouldn't abandon someone even

when it would have been safer to walk away. Queen Warnham, whose daughter was friends with Jassie, said we just have to stick together as family, friends, the community, and just have to be careful with people today. It's sad. You just don't know who to trust, and sometimes we trust the wrong people. Jessie's cousin, Fernada, spoke about Jassie's daughter and said she has no idea, She's just looking for

her mom. Gabby is three years old now, the same age Jassi had been when her father brought her to America, when he had believed in a better future for his daughter. The next day, Jassy's funeral was held at Saint Peter Parish. Her white casket was adorned with white flowers, along with the poster board filled with photos of Jassy and her daughter. During the service, Jasse's father Walking called her his good child and my dear Jassy. He said he wished her

eternal rest in paradise. He had brought her to this country for a better life. He'd worked and sacrificed, He'd done everything a father could do, and she had still been taken from him. As the prosecution and defense were busy preparing for trial, it was announced that Cooman wasn't a suspect in the other murder and rape cases. Its

DNA didn't match the suspects DNA, ruling him out. The case pressed on, and in November twenty twenty one, federal prosecutors announced that they weren't going to seek the death penalty commens Jan's attorney, David House said, the defense team has felt from the onset that this case was not appropriate for a capital prosecution, and with that, the trial date was scheduled for May of the following year. Lewis Coleman, the Third arrived in court on the eleventh of May

twenty twenty two. During opening statements, it became clear just how contrasting the two versions of events were. While there was no denying that Coleman had killed Jassy, the crux of the case hinged on what exactly happened during the car ride from the club. Prosecutor Elianna and Nusman described Jassie walking with Coleman to his vehicle and climbing into the passenger seat. She said whatever he said that Jassey made her feel safe enough to walk to his car

with him. Safe. That word hung in the courtroom. Jassy had felt safe with him, She trusted him. Nusman showed the surveillance video of Coleman carrying Jassie's partially nude body into his apartment. He watched in silence as Jassie was dragged across a lobby floor like something disposable. Defense attorney David House told the jury during his opening statements that Coleman was not guilty of kidnapping and that was the

only charge that juror should focus on. He said that despite allegations raised by prosecutors, Coleman hadn't been charged with manslaughter, murder, or rape. He said, Coleman is more than a terrible series of events that took place in the early morning hours of February twenty fourth, twenty nineteen. Nobody wants to be known or remembered by the worst thing of their lives.

According to the defense, Coleman had only wanted to help jasse when he saw her being pushed from the uber, who said there clearly was a fight between Jasey and Lewis. What happened in that car was not a planned event, and it wasn't instigated. He claimed that Jassy was the aggressor, that she had attacked Coleman in his car that it was her who didn't survive the alter cation. He said that surveillance from earlier and that night showed Jassi in

an altercation with Nea. He said that she had been sewing. He said that she had been showing signs for gression that night. The defense was painting Jassie as violent as the one who started it. After that, the testimony began. The jury heard from Jasse's friends who were with her at the club that night. Aga condered what the defense said that Jassi was aggressive. She said that Jassi was only trying to cam Nea down, that she was trying to help her friend the way she always did. Nea testified,

I don't remember anything. She said that her drink must have been spiked for her to act the way she did. The memory was gone, blacked out completely. The jury then heard from detectives who testified about the items that Coleman had purchased after he killed Jassie. The bleache, the plastic sheets, the air freshener, the pruning shares and pliers. These weren't the purchases of somebody who panicked. These were the purchases

of somebody covering their tracks. Doctor Jenny Vushofsky the pathologist who conducted Jasie's autopsy, was the next to take the stand. She said that Jassi had been strangled to death by hand. There was bruising all over her body, including a T shaped bruise on her forehead and on the right side of her head. She said that there were bite marks found on Coleman's forearm and face, indicating that Jassie had

fought for her life. She'd fought hard. The jury learned that there was a twelve minute stop soon after Coleman's car started out from Tremont Street. The prosecution said that this was when Coleman raped and strangled Jassi. The trial then drew to a close and closing arguments were presented. Prosecutor Robert Richardson told the jury that Coleman had lured Jassy to his car by promising her ride back home. She was vulnerable, intoxicated, he seemed kind. Instead, he raped

her and then strangled her. The defense, on the other hand, said that Jasy and Coleman had consensual sex, but that the encounter then turned violent. Defense attorney Jane Peachey said that it was Jassie who attacked Coleman, who she said panicked when she died. The defense argued that Coleman hadn't set out to Boston with the intent to kill. They

said he had texted friends inviting them out. The defense attorney said that Coleman hadn't called police because he was a black man in America who had already been beaten once by the police. It wasn't debatable that Jassy had been killed by Coleman. That much was fact, but the jury needed to decide whether the prosecution had proved beyond a reasonable doubt that his actions constituted kidnapping resulting in death. The jury was sent off to deliberate. They soon returned

with a verdict guilty. Coleman was found guilty of kidnapping resulting in death. In October, Lewis Coleman returned to court for the sentencing. Face Jassie's family laned up before Judge Sailor to describe the pain and grave he had inflicted upon them. One by one, they spoke. Her mother, Celette, said that Coleman had taken her daughter's life and destroyed

the whole family. She said, through an interpreter, it's been three years since I lost Jassi, and since then, I don't even feel like living because life became senseless to me. One of the things that I recall from Jassi is that whenever she was in need of something, she would reach out to me, and mister Coleman took that chance from her to call me to come rescue her. Celite

described Coleman as a heartless person and a monster. Jassie's father, Walking, described how they had arrived in the United States for a better life in May of nineteen ninety nine. He'd brought a three year old daughter across the ocean full of hope, he then added, but unfortunately Jassy didn't find it. He then tearfully said, I showed her the right and the wrong, but unfortunately life hasn't been easy for the career of family. Jassy was free to do whatever she

likes because she was much older, she was an adult. Today, I have this profound pain because Jasie's daughter is five and she's soon going to turn six. This is a moment where she's going to start asking questions about her mother, questions like why everybody has a mother but she doesn't have hers with her. The courtroom was silent except for the sound of people crying. Lewis Coleman was asked whether he wanted to address the courtroom. He paused for a

moment before saying no, you're honor. Judge Sailor then addressed Jassi's family and said, I don't have a magic wand I don't have a time machine. I can't go back in time to the sidewalk in February twenty nineteen, and it's difficult for me to think of anything to say to provide some level of comfort for the family. All murders or senses, I suppose, since all human life is precious, the circumstances of this case seem unusually senseless, unusually troubling.

He then handed down the sentence life in prison without the possibility of parole. Coleman would die behind bars. He would never walk free again. Later that day, Coleman's defense attorney said they planned on filing an appeal. David Hoose announced it's a sad day for both families. I think that the thing that was most difficult for Ausin for Coleman was hearing him portray it as a monster. He's not a monster. He's a bright, intelligent young man who

had a great future ahead of him. And it's difficult to explain or for anyone to understand what happened that night when two troubled people's lives intersect did with a horrific result to troubled people, as if Jassi was somehow equally responsible for what happened in that car. That appeal came in February of twenty and twenty four. The appeal argued that while Coleman never contested that he cause Jassie's death, he wasn't charged with homicide, and that the government's kidnapping

case wasn't strong enough it was largely circumstantial. They argued that the state didn't prove that Coleman had held Jassi against her will for an appreciable time. That appeal was denied. Well, that is it for this episode of Morbidology. As always, thank you so much for listening, and I'd like to say a big massive thank you to my new supporters

up on Patreon, Alex Kelly and Heather. The link to Patreon is in the show notes if you'd like to join In exchange for your support, I upload ad free in the early release episodes behind the Scenes, and I also upload bonus episodes of Morbidology. Plus that aren't on the regular podcast platforms. I also send out a thank you card along with some cool Patreon exclusive merch. Morbidology is also now up on Apple Subscriptions, where you can

get bonus episodes of Morbidology plus there as well. Remember to check us out at morbidology dot com for more information about this episode and to read some true crime articles. Until next time, take care of yourselves, stay safe, and have an amazing week. Pe