GUILTY MI - Janna Kelly, 60, Grand Rapids, 4 Dec 2007

[JusticeWillBeServed]

An article today about the trial. They were going to move the trial to Kent County because they believed that the murder happened there. However, someone left a comment at the bottom saying that the trial will still be held in Ottawa County.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/05/janna_kelly_homicide_ottawa_co.html

The suspect charged in Ottawa County in the 2007 killing of Janna Kelly will be tried in Kent County where police think the crime occurred.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

"Woman heading to trial for Janna Kelly cold case murder"

http://fox17online.com/2015/05/27/woman-heading-to-trial-for-janna-kelly-cold-case-murder/

The 52-year-old Kent County woman waived her preliminary hearing in Kent County 61st District Court Wednesday and was bound over to circuit court for trial. She is facing an open murder charge in Kelly’s death.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

"Documents: Blood on Kelly’s coat, car was Root’s"

http://woodtv.com/2015/06/29/documents-blood-on-kellys-coat-car-was-roots/

Court documents show investigators found blood on Kelly’s coat, which was discovered along with her purse and wallet at a car wash on Burton Street in Grand Rapids. There was also blood found on Kelly’s car, which was abandoned near the intersection of Louise Street and Plymouth Avenue SE in Grand Rapids.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Trial to start on November 2nd.

8 years after Janna Kelly's homicide, a trial date is set - July 7, 2015

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/07/eight_years_after_jenna_kellys.html

A month shy of the eighth anniversary of her slaying, a trial will begin for the woman police say confessed to killing Janna Kelly, leaving her body in the truck of a car for days and then dumping it in a vacant field.

Robin Root, 52, faces life in prison if she is convicted of murder in the trial slated to begin Nov. 2 after prosecutors and defense attorney David Dodge agreed to the date in Kent County Circuit Court this week.

Police surprised by alleged confession to Janna Kelly's homicide - September 11, 2015

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/09/police_say_they_were_surprised.html

The arrest of Robin Root in April for the 2007 homicide of Janna Kelly came as a surprise to many, none more so than the detectives who arrested her.

After more than five hours of police questioning April 27, Root is recorded giving what police say is a confession to the December 2007 slaying of Kelly in Grand Rapids.

But while detectives suspected Root, they claimed to have had no plans to arrest her during the interview at the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department in West Olive, according to testimony Friday, Sept. 11, in Kent County Circuit Court.

"If she had not confessed, we would have allowed her to go home," Grand Rapids Police Detective Tim DeVries said.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Trial underway.

Murder trial in 2007 cold case begins Monday

http://fox17online.com/2015/11/02/murder-trial-in-2007-cold-case-begins-monday/

The murder trial of a woman accused of a 2007 murder begins today.

A jury will be selected starting Monday morning for Robin Lynn Root, who is being tried for the 2007 murder of Janna Kelly.

 

[MamaJoJo]

I wonder if WS member misterGwriter knows that someone was arrested in Janna's murder and is now on trial? And, I wonder how accurate their theory of her murder will turn out to be? While it wasn't a random crime, did Root have knowledge of the specific area like misterG suggested? And how was it that Root wasn't a suspect way before this spring? Did the debt just disappear when Janna did?

I'm glad Janna's family is finally getting justice. It was horrible way to die and Root should get the book thrown at her.

 

[FrostOwl]

And how was it that Root wasn't a suspect way before this spring?

According to this article, http://woodtv.com/2015/06/29/documents-blood-on-kellys-coat-car-was-roots/ , Root was a suspect from the beginning, why the police didn't do a DNA-test from the beginning is difficult to know.

The documents show Root was a suspect from the beginning, and was even interviewed by detectives the day after Kelly was reported missing. At the time, she denied knowing anything about Kelly’s disappearance and denied being in the area where her body was eventually found.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

The prosecutor said that they simply forgot to test Root's DNA. It took seven years for them to realize that it was never tested.

http://woodtv.com/2015/11/02/gr-womans-cold-case-killing-murder-or-manslaughter/

While the murder of a Grand Rapids businesswoman went unsolved for more than seven years, a prosecutor says evidence that could’ve brought down her killer sat on the desk of investigators.

In opening statements Monday, the prosecutor told jurors a DNA sample of accused killer Robin Root was taken days after the murder of Janna Kelly, but the sample was not submitted to the lab by Grand Rapids police. An Ottawa County cold case detective realized the mistake nearly seven years later, on July 21, 2014.

In court Monday, Root’s attorney said the case was about Root’s state of mind at the time, and whether it was a case of murder or manslaughter. Root’s lawyer said the only time frame that mattered is what led up to Kelly’s death. He said witnesses will testify that Root is a “ non-violent person”, and that his client had no motive or intent to kill Kelly.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

'Do you think something happened,' murder suspect asks police

"We were just sitting there open-mouthed and in shock and a little scared because that's right in our backyard," Root said in the recorded interview that was played for jurors on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Root admitted she had talked to Kelly, 60, a few days before her Dec. 5 disappearance about an eviction settlement in which Root owed her former landlord about $2,900. Despite the tension, Root denied having any interest in harming Kelly.

"No. She was very nice," Root answered to a detective's question about the possibility she'd hurt Kelly. "She was just a nice person."

Also Tuesday, Kelly's daughter, Dana Isola, testified to her relationship with her mother.

"I was very close to my mom," Isola said. "She was my best friend, always my advocate, always on my side. We spoke almost daily."

Janna Kelly’s daughter testifies in cold case murder trial

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Found Guilty!

8 years later, Janna Kelly's killer found guilty of murder

Four hours before they found Robin Root guilty of first-degree murder in the 2007 slaying of Janna Kelly, Assistant Ottawa County Prosecutor Lee Fisher told jurors he did not believe that Root simply pushed Kelly to the ground 8 years ago as she claims.

"I submit the following: That the defendant strangled Janna Kelly with her hands," Fisher said during his final argument Friday, Nov. 6, in Kent County Circuit Court.

'It's God's plan,' Janna Kelly's daughter says of 8-year delay in justice

Wiping tears from her eyes, Dana Isola said she has nothing but gratitude for police officers who never rested while trying to find the person who killed her mother in 2007.

Eight years later, Isola, the daughter of Grand Rapids businesswoman Janna Kelly, gained a measure of justice as a jury convicted Robin Root of first-degree murder.

the jury found Root guilty of first-degree murder and now she faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole when she is sentenced by Judge George Buth on Dec. 9.

After the verdict, friends and family of Root gathered in the courtroom, away from the gathered reporters in the hallway, and prayed. They declined to comment.

 

[MamaJoJo]

Thank goodness someone had the sense to test the left over DNA samples and that investigators were able to find the cell phone data. Just like the jury, I don't believe for a second that JK was killed because RR was so deeply nice she panicked when in a confrontation with JK. Rubbish! I believe RR panicked after she killed JK as evidenced by the throwing her in the trunk, leaving her there overnight, dumping her body then going back, stripping her naked and burning her corpse. How RR carried on for 8 years without going crazy is beyond my comprehension.

RIP Janna.

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Robin Root was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/12/lifetime_of_darkness_and_joyle.html

For eight years, the family of Janna Kelly lived without knowing why the beloved 60-year-old woman was killed and her body left in a field.

For eight years, Kelly's murderer, Robin Root, enjoyed a life enjoying holidays and milestones with her children and grandchildren.

But on Wednesday, Dec. 9, that came to an end as 53-year-old Root was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for mortally wounding Kelly, placing her in the trunk of a car over a freezing December night and then dumping the body in a field in Ottawa County.

Root sentenced to life in prison for 2007 murder of Janna Kelly

 

[JusticeWillBeServed]

Conviction in Janna Kelly murder overturned; Robin Root to get new trial

http://fox17online.com/2017/09/01/conviction-in-janna-kelly-murder-overturned-robin-root-to-get-new-trial/

The court ruled Friday that Root’s conviction should be overturned, saying the trial court wrongly denied her motion to suppress parts of an April 2015 videotaped statement to police “that were obtained in violation of her constitutional rights.”

The Court of Appeals claims the trial court erred “when it determined that Root was not in custody before being formally told that she was under arrest….the detectives should have advised Root of her rights consistent with Miranda and, because they did not, her statements after that point were inadmissable.”

Jana Kelly killing: Prosecutor to appeal reversal of murder conviction

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2017/09/jana_kelly_killing_prosecutor.html

Prosecutors will ask the state Supreme Court to overturn a Court of Appeals ruling that provides Robin Root, convicted of first-degree murder in the 2007 killing of Grand Rapids businesswoman, Jana Kelly, a new trial.

Assistant Ottawa County Prosecutor Lee Fisher, who tried the case in Kent County Circuit Court, plans to ask the Supreme Court to hear an appeal.

"If the Supreme Court reverses the Court of Appeals, then the conviction stands," Fisher told MLive and The Grand Rapids Press on Friday, Sept. 1.

"If the Supreme Court upholds it, then we're on track for a new trial."

 

[JerseyGirl]

Robin Root, 54, turned down an offer to plead to second-degree murder Monday, April 30, in exchange for a sentence of 20-30 years in prison. She faces up to life in prison if convicted again of first-degree murder.

Instead, she and her defense attorney will prepare for trial to likely begin in September.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2018/04/woman_awaiting_new_trial_in_20.html

 

[iulia]

Retrial in Janna Kelly's 2007 killing begins after conviction overturned

GRAND RAPIDS, MI - A jury has been seated in the retrial of Robin Root whose first-degree murder conviction in the 2007 killing of businesswoman Janna Kelly was overturned by the state Court of Appeals.

The trial began Monday, Sept. 17, before Kent County Circuit Judge Joseph Rossi.

 

[YESorNO]

2007 interview played for jurors in Root retrial

Sep 18, 2018

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Woman found guilty of Janna Kelly murder (with clip)

Sep 22, 2018

"GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A jury has found a woman guilty of the 2007 murder of a Grand Rapids businesswoman for a second time.

The jury came to its verdict around 5 p.m. after about five hours of deliberations Friday....

Next is sentencing on Oct. 17 which will be determined by Judge Joseph Rossi with a maximum of life but a minimum that could be as low as 25 years.

“We will certainly be arguing for higher than that minimum as the low end of her sentence just based on the horrific facts of this case, Fisher said.

The daughter of Janna Kelly will have a chance to give a statement before sentencing and has indicated she will do so. "

Woman found guilty of Janna Kelly murder

(Janna Kelly)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[YESorNO]

Robin Root sentenced to up to 50 years in prison for death of former landlord

October 17, 2018

"GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The woman convicted of murdering her landlord will spend up to 50 years in prison.

In September, a Kent County jury found 55-year-old Robin Root guilty in the 2007 murder of Janna Kelly. This new sentence comes after the first one was overturned....

While the judge handed down the sentence, he ordered Root to pay the $2,900 of back rent to Kelly's family. He said it's a true tragedy that two familys' lives are ruined because of a past due rent bill."

Robin Root sentenced to up to 50 years in prison for death of former landlord
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[YESorNO]

Conviction stands for woman who killed, burned landlord over $2,900 debt

April 30, 2020

"...Root challenged both her conviction and sentence. The appeals court, in a nine-page ruling, recently upheld both.

Root, now 57, is at the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Washtenaw County. She is not eligible for release until April of 2040."

Conviction stands for woman who killed, burned landlord over $2,900 debt