MS - Jessica Chambers, 19, found burned near her car, Panola County, 6 Dec 2014 - #8

[MotherOcean]

I believe a perp. was in the car with Jessica when Jessica reached for her phone. Or perhaps Jessica bolted from the car with her phone in hand. But, I lean towards them being in the car. Perp. grabbed the phone and removed the battery as an intimidation tactic. Situation continued to escalate and perp. threw both the phone and the battery out the window or, if already out of the car at that point, threw it wherever. Or, possibly perp. was attempting to disable any location features that the phone was capable of. But, I mostly think it was an intimidation tactic.

 

[ZOOL]

BBM

BBM

Yes. Ben and Jessica spoke on the phone 15 minutes before he died.
Jess and Ben were both Christians who believe in the afterlife.
Ben Allen Chamber Jr, 28, was engaged to be married when he died. He has three children who live in Greenville, MS; one girl and two boys.

JMO

Do you have links for the "15 minutes before...", "Christians who believed..." (Your remark is the first I have seen referencing these details.)

*just curious*

 

[samantha17]

I don't. I still see no evidence of any crime, but I keep an open mind pending the release of actual evidence.

LE deemed it a homicide .... homicide is definitely a crime.

 

[MotherOcean]

http://www.clarionledger.com/story/...to-her-killer-theyre-coming-for-you/20543785/
12/18/14

Coroner Gracie Gulledge said the cause of the young woman's death was thermal injury. Officials immediately classified it as a homicide.

The autopsy is complete, but officials are tight-lipped on what it adds to the case.

"We know what happened to her," said District Attorney John Champion. "We're not going to comment on that."

The final results of the autopsy might not be available for about six weeks, Champion said, but officials have what they need to know what happened to the teen before her death earlier this month.

 

[PeterThomasFan]

No specific theory. Vehicle fires happen all the time, even when there is no obvious collision. Many threads back, I posted links that showed up in a google search for (I'm guessing the search words I used)
"vehicle fire death"

I was surprised how frequently fires of unknown origin result in death. The causes of the fires end up being things such as a rock thrown up by a tire that causes a hole in a fuel tank, a mechanical malfunction or design flaw, or carelessness of the motor vehicle operator - from falling asleep/passing out with a burning cigarette or cigar to use of flammable liquids while getting high.

Right now, there are too many questions unanswered and too little evidence for me to even attempt an educated guess. I could use my imagination and come up with a real psychological-crime thriller, but I try not to do that.

If my name (or an unnamed person who seemed very similar to me) was being discussed and some people - even strangers on the web - believed I was capable of being so inhumane and acting so heinous, I would be devastated.

I'll wait to see what LE & the prosecution has. (btw - I don't assume they bungled this investigation but this post is long enough already.)

JMO

I researched and posted the same awhile back. Lots of issues with Kia.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[southernyankee]

<i>Police are searching her data and text records after obtaining warrants Wednesday that compelled Google and her cell phone provider to give police access to her phone's content, Champion said. Investigators believe her phone will be "the key to everything," the prosecutor said. She received a call before she left her house, he said. </i><br />
<br />
http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/11/us/mississippi-girl-burns-to-death/<br/>

The above leads me to think her phone might have been an Android (Google) - the one I have had dropped with the back popping off. The battery sometimes fell out. Could it simply have unknowingly fallen out of the pocket of a quickly departing person?

Aahhh! This is a great observation!! I'm smacking my own forehead here that it didn't even occur to me since I've been an Android user myself for the last couple years... the model I had for most of that time was a Samsung Galaxy S3. I try to be gentle-ish with my phone because I hate bulky covers... but I've always had a very thin cover for the back + corners of it.

I've dropped it multiple times (accidentally) over the course of owning it. The case once got a crack in it as did the screen, but never to my recollection did the battery pop out as a result of dropping it. The case may have helped in that, though.

But: I have never *thrown* it and no one that I'm aware of ever threw it or purposely tried to cause it any damage, either. An action with deliberate human force behind it (a throw, a punch, or simply dismantling it etc.) versus a fall or drop would probably do more damage and have a greater likelihood of the battery dislodging.

 

[cady]

I've always wondered what lead them to think that she wasn't alone at Herron Road. Could it be that the person who dialed 911 saw another car there? Or someone leaving the scene on foot?

Also, was the trunk pried open at the impound lot or at the scene? How would they know that no one was locked in the trunk? OOPS, we have no photos of the car at the scene.......JMO

 

[southernyankee]

Also, was the trunk pried open at the impound lot or at the scene? How would they know that no one was locked in the trunk? OOPS, we have no photos of the car at the scene.......JMO

I'm going to give an educated guess that the trunk was pried open at the impound lot, but this guess is based on the fact that we DO have a photograph or two, at least, of the car during daylight hours in a lot (the impound lot?). A crowbar can be seen resting on the car, atop the trunk, in these pics.

 

[southernyankee]

More phone thoughts:

I really wish we had more details as to Jessica's phone, the make/model, her provider, whether she had a cover on it, the actual location and physical condition of the phone when found, etc. - any of it, though I understand why we may not be privy to that info.

A note on physical condition: I would think if the phone had any significant exposure to the heat or flames it would be apparent to investigators. Depending on the phone and its materials (specific types of plastics in the model + their known melting points), I think this could be assessed accurately (especially when considering where the phone + its battery were found relative to the location of the burning car and Jessica herself when found at the scene).

The truth is, investigators must at least know the following:
1) the make/model of JC's phone
---> it follows that the parts + materials can then be known
2) whether she had a cover on it/if it was found with a cover or case
3) WHERE it was found (specific location it was discovered)
----> how far apart the battery was from the rest of the phone
----> the proximity of the phone parts relative to the location of the burning car and/or Jessica herself
4) whether the phone or any of its parts may have viable fingerprints or touch evidence on it
5) based on a warrant, subpoena, or whatever legally obtained permission was acquired from investigators, the company provider of her cell phone service and in turn the telecom records associated with her account, including the digital contents of her phone storage (recent calls, contact list, text message inbox, location services, etc.)

 

[imkeylime]

Aahhh! This is a great observation!! I'm smacking my own forehead here that it didn't even occur to me since I've been an Android user myself for the last couple years... the model I had for most of that time was a Samsung Galaxy S3. I try to be gentle-ish with my phone because I hate bulky covers... but I've always had a very thin cover for the back + corners of it.

I've dropped it multiple times (accidentally) over the course of owning it. The case once got a crack in it as did the screen, but never to my recollection did the battery pop out as a result of dropping it. The case may have helped in that, though.

But: I have never *thrown* it and no one that I'm aware of ever threw it or purposely tried to cause it any damage, either. An action with deliberate human force behind it (a throw, a punch, or simply dismantling it etc.) versus a fall or drop would probably do more damage and have a greater likelihood of the battery dislodging.

The back can definitely pop off when a Samsung Galaxy is thrown or even tossed. That happened to mine (Samsung Galaxy Mini) when a family member tossed it. (It worked fine afterward, thankfully.)

 

[suspicious1]

I had a dream last night about Jessica...it was so strange as if she was speaking to me.

What I took away from the dream was this:
Jessica knew who attacked her and thought they were "cool"
She also knew the moment she felt she was in danger.
She tried to tell her mother indirectly what was going on when they spoke on the phone.
Jessica could't get away but she tried.
She had been over powered
The people that attacked her, she spoke to them at the gas station
There was a photo on her phone

I don't know what all of this means but one thing that stuck out to me was that she spoke to her mom about the situation that she no longer felt safe in. t

 

[Kat320]

More phone thoughts:

I really wish we had more details as to Jessica's phone, the make/model, her provider, whether she had a cover on it, the actual location and physical condition of the phone when found, etc. - any of it, though I understand why we may not be privy to that info.

A note on physical condition: I would think if the phone had any significant exposure to the heat or flames it would be apparent to investigators. Depending on the phone and its materials (specific types of plastics in the model + their known melting points), I think this could be assessed accurately (especially when considering where the phone + its battery were found relative to the location of the burning car and Jessica herself when found at the scene).

The truth is, investigators must at least know the following:
1) the make/model of JC's phone
---> it follows that the parts + materials can then be known
2) whether she had a cover on it/if it was found with a cover or case
3) WHERE it was found (specific location it was discovered)
----> how far apart the battery was from the rest of the phone
----> the proximity of the phone parts relative to the location of the burning car and/or Jessica herself
4) whether the phone or any of its parts may have viable fingerprints or touch evidence on it
5) based on a warrant, subpoena, or whatever legally obtained permission was acquired from investigators, the company provider of her cell phone service and in turn the telecom records associated with her account, including the digital contents of her phone storage (recent calls, contact list, text message inbox, location services, etc.)

This pic of JC with a phone was taken mid-august 2014. This could be the phone she had. She also could have taken this pic with someone else's phone or switched phones since then, but it's a start. I don't know if anyone can tell what kind of phone it is from this pic, then the battery question would be answered, that is, if this was indeed the phone she had the night she was killed.

 

[cady]

View attachment 67859
This pic of JC with a phone was taken mid-august 2014. This could be the phone she had. She also could have taken this pic with someone else's phone or switched phones since then, but it's a start. I don't know if anyone can tell what kind of phone it is from this pic, then the battery question would be answered, that is, if this was indeed the phone she had the night she was killed.

Question....if that pic was taken in mid august 2014, it must have been at Leah's house?? I thought that they didn't go out socializing, except maybe to church? The dress is really cute, but not exactly church-wear is it? Dunno,i'm not a church patronizer. Just wondering. JMO

edit... I have seen the whole pic, it is a tightly fitted dress and very short. As I said, cute, and she looks cute in it.

 

[Kat320]

Question....if that pic was taken in mid august 2014, it must have been at Leah's house?? I thought that they didn't go out socializing, except maybe to church? The dress is really cute, but not exactly church-wear is it? Dunno,i'm not a church patronize. Just wondering. JMO

edit... I have seen the whole pic, it is a tightly fitted dress and very short. As I said, cute, and she looks cute in it.

I should have said, it was posted on her Facebook mid august. Can't be sure that's when she originally took the photo.

 

[bbbd4u]

This is where the "15 minutes before" came from http://www.wellsfuneralhome.net/fh/obituaries/tributes.cfm?o_id=1474869&fh_id=11662

 

[bbbd4u]

Do you have links for the "15 minutes before...", "Christians who believed..." (Your remark is the first I have seen referencing these details.)

*just curious*

This is where the "15 minutes before" came from http://www.wellsfuneralhome.net/fh/obituaries/tributes.cfm?o_id=1474869&fh_id=11662

Sorry for the multiple posting :-/

 

[southernyankee]

Question....if that pic was taken in mid august 2014, it must have been at Leah's house?? I thought that they didn't go out socializing, except maybe to church? The dress is really cute, but not exactly church-wear is it? Dunno,i'm not a church patronizer. Just wondering. JMO

edit... I have seen the whole pic, it is a tightly fitted dress and very short. As I said, cute, and she looks cute in it.

No, not necessarily at Leah's House. If we take into account what Lisa (Jessica's mother) reported during her recent interview on True Crime Radio, she said Jessica was at Leah's House for 6-8 weeks and I believe that was over the course of June + July 2014. So she probably wasn't posting it from LH, but I suppose it's possible the picture could've been taken there.

I agree that it is a cute picture of Jessica! She kind of reminds me of a grown-up Cindy Lou Who with her hair way up + the stripey dress. and I say that entirely with affection.

As for the phone: It's hard to tell exactly what she's using based on this pic alone. My first, not-even-thinking-hard impression is that it looks like a black HTC phone, but it is difficult to tell. In any case, it looks smaller than a Samsung Galaxy, at least to me.

 

[Crosby87]

Do you have links for the "15 minutes before...", "Christians who believed..." (Your remark is the first I have seen referencing these details.)

*just curious*

Yes, you can find Jessica&#8217;s message to her brother by clicking on the guestbook tab on the link below.
When you open the link, it says Ben Jr was &#8220;Church of Christ&#8221; by faith and I know they believe there&#8217;s an Afterlife.
I heard Jessica was attending several churches and in her message she said she knows her brother is still watching over her like he always did, and she knows she will see him again.

http://www.wellsfuneralhome.net/fh/obituaries/tributes.cfm?o_id=1474869&fh_id=11662

 

[SteveP]

It is a white station wagon similar to the one in M&M video.

But in all reality: "just another shot in the dark" -- although this shot is parked only 1.2 miles away from the crime scene. Forget my eyesight; I've got a vivid imagination. :takeabow:

Hey, imagination is about all we've got to work with, so more power to those with good ones.

 

[Concerned Mama]

Also, was the trunk pried open at the impound lot or at the scene? How would they know that no one was locked in the trunk? OOPS, we have no photos of the car at the scene.......JMO

The back seat of the vehicle would have burned, leaving only the framework of a pull-down seat. You could shine a flashlight to see if anything/anybody was in the trunk.

That's not an answer to your question, but I'd think since the photos at the impound lot show the crowbar on top of the trunk, LE didn't pry it open until it was at the lot. JMO.