MI - Jesika Kelsey, 17, raped & murdered, Highland Township, 31 Dc 2008

[MeoW333]

I apologize for the bolding of text

 

[ohiogirl]

No problem, thank you for in link. I feel for the teacher and I don't blame him
for not wanting his name out.

 

[Lyn1001]

When I was in college, I was home for the summer and the police came to my house to do a welfare check. They stated a 911 call had come from my number and they couldn't get through when they tried to call back. They asked who was in the home and if everything was okay. I told them it was, but you could tell they were looking for any hint that I was being threatened. After I told them I'd been on the computer, they ended up asking if I had a dial up connection to the internet. Apparently sometimes dial up will go wacky and dial 911. They never came in the house, nor did I invite them in. While they were in uniform, and I lived in a VERY safe neighborhood, I could not see the parking area from the door. It was only my mother and I in the home, and I honestly did not know if it was someone trying to gain access to our home. People have been known to dress as police officers to commit crimes. Granted, I knew where my mom was in the house, but even if I didn't, I probably wouldn't have checked until they were gone. Or I would have asked them to please stay outside while I checked.

As for sleeping through something, we don't know if people were still up. The daughter may have gone to bed before anyone else, and since others were still partying, they didn't hear anything. Also, even when I don't drink, I can sleep through anything (or used to, before I became a mom!). I hated when I stayed alone because I was always afraid someone would break in and I wouldn't hear it. I've fallen out of bed, onto a metal vent, and not woken up. My DH, when he drinks, will not wake up. He rolled over on top of me after drinking one night (before becoming a dad), and I had to shimmy my way out because nothing would wake him up. So I do think it is possible that no one heard anything.

 

[Kat]

Thank you for the updates MeoW333. I initially thought when this case was first posted that this young man might have had a psychotic break. Many times young men at this age range will have their first break with reality if they suffer from schizophrenia. I'm not saying that is what he has, because honestly I am in no way qualified to make a guess at to what he suffers from.

It is my personal opinion that people who commit a crime during psychosis are not culpable for their actions. They should be treated for their illnesses and do time while under doctors care. I hope that makes sense.

I found it interesting that neither he or his sister completed high school. I assume he had his GED. That's neither here nor there concerning his crime though. Some families do not push children to continue their education, they just do not have that as a priority, it means nothing.

 

[Kat]

Update: 08 JAN 09

http://www.freep.com/article/20090108/NEWS03/901080417

"Jennifer Spencer, Jesika's mother, found her daughter's partially nude body in the bedroom she shared with her brother, after Oakland County Sheriff's Office deputies came to the family's Highland Township home."

and

"Investigators say the brother and sister had shared a bedroom since Steven Kelsey returned from basic training. Bouchard said he could not comment on whether there was a record of sexual abuse in the home."



If that's accurate that's an unusual sleeping arrangement, IMO.

 

[MeoW333]

Sounds like they had limited bedroom space in their house. It was a mobile home, so space is limited. If the mother only knew what was going to happen.. i'm sure she would have made Steven sleep on the couch.
Jesika probably had the room to herself when he was away at Basic training. Then he came home, so they shared a room (hopefully not a bed as well..)

 

[MeoW333]

http://hometownlife.com/article/20090108/NEWS11/901080347/1028

"Steven Kelsey, the U.S. Army recruit charged for the gruesome homicide of his 17-year-old sister Jesika, was scheduled for a pretrial conference in front of Judge Robert Bondy in Novi's 52-1 District Court Wednesday after reportedly confessing to stabbing his sister multiple times and then having sex with her as she lay dying on her bedroom floor."

That is so horrible, my prayers for the mother, she'll need a lot of counseling with this case. 2 kids, one dead/raped by the other who will be locked up for life.

 

[STEADFAST]

Sounds like they had limited bedroom space in their house. It was a mobile home, so space is limited. If the mother only knew what was going to happen.. i'm sure she would have made Steven sleep on the couch.
Jesika probably had the room to herself when he was away at Basic training. Then he came home, so they shared a room (hopefully not a bed as well..)

I wonder if they shared a room all their lives. Army Boot Camp only lasts 9-10 weeks depending on the length of inprocessing. So, he was only away from home since October.

 

[Kat]

I wonder if they shared a room all their lives. Army Boot Camp only lasts 9-10 weeks depending on the length of inprocessing. So, he was only away from home since October.

That's what caught my eye too, Steadfast. Army basic training is only 8 weeks long.

Of course I am not assigning blame on the parents, it's just seemed an odd sleeping arrangement to me as the Mother of 3 teens and one pre-teen.

 

[cindysnow3]

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090103/METRO/901030413

Investigators believe Kelsey wanted to have sex with his sister about 3:30 a.m. New Year's Day, but she refused. He then slit her throat and proceeded to attempt sex, investigators said.

 

[Kat]

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090103/METRO/901030413

Investigators believe Kelsey wanted to have sex with his sister about 3:30 a.m. New Year's Day, but she refused. He then slit her throat and proceeded to attempt sex, investigators said.

Thank you cindysnow for the update. Gruesome details in that article (egads!)

 

[Filly]

How heart wrenching for that poor mom.

If the crime ocurred at 3:30AM and it being New Years Eve the party could have actually been going on still. This poor girl possibly didn't get a chance to scream. If your own brother attempts to have sex with you and slits your throat no doubt he muffled her cries for help. That sleeping arrangement absolutely was a recipe for trouble, but it happens. Socio economics can often play a part in having not enough room. Maybe they didn't make the son bunk on the couch because the party was still going on? Who knows?

On the welfare check. I think I posted this before. My sibling has three sons. The kids were little and the boys were fighting. My brother just worked outside all day for nine hours. Went food shopping, made dinner and was cleaning the dishes. Ocassionally telling them to knock it off. Next thing you know he hears cop cars. He's thinking "Wow something happened". Here come the cops at his door. "We got a 911 call from this number and the person took the phone off the hook". At this my bro sees one of his sons trying to run out the back door. Here my nephew was mad his big brother was beating him up so he called 911 saying something like his brother is killing him.

Oh my brother was peeved. He tells the cops they might as well stay or come back because I think he was going to kill my nephew. Just an aside as this story is so horrific. Usually the cops have a inkling when they get a welfare check. Not always though.

 

[Kat]

Thanks for sharing that perspective on welfare checks Filly. I have not lived in a civillian community for over 16 yrs now. It is done a lot differently on a military post in government quarters.

 

[MrsG728]

I believe that (after speaking to 2 Iraqi war veterans)


Our combat ready soldiers are trained to kill using advanced technology that mimics a first-person shooter game instead of using strategies more than weaponry. I am not anti-military, but they need to figure out a way to de-compress these guys before they come home.

In the 1940's and 1950's, these guys had a week on a ship to think things through. Now, they're home in 8 hours just out of a firefight.

 

[Fairy1]

I believe that (after speaking to 2 Iraqi war veterans)


Our combat ready soldiers are trained to kill using advanced technology that mimics a first-person shooter game instead of using strategies more than weaponry. I am not anti-military, but they need to figure out a way to de-compress these guys before they come home.

In the 1940's and 1950's, these guys had a week on a ship to think things through. Now, they're home in 8 hours just out of a firefight.

This guy was not a combat soldier - he had just finished his basic training. It would seem he had issues for a long while that may have been ignored by the family. I have teenagers around the same age and I think it's weird they would have been sleeping in the same room. I do not believe anyone could have anticipated this, but I do believe there were warning signs......

 

[MrsG728]

Yikes! Nevermind the comment then. It IS weird that they were in the same room. This poor family...

 

[Atanua]

Maybe this was his way "out" of the military. There seems no logic in killing and raping one's sister, it's very twisted and disturbed.

There is many ways out of boot camp, really not that hard to get out at that point, which has been stated he was on 'leave' from just finishing.

 

[Kat]

There is many ways out of boot camp, really not that hard to get out at that point, which has been stated he was on 'leave' from just finishing.

No doubt Atanua, to lighten the thread with a bit of humor, my Husband had one soldier that decided he wanted out and so he shot off his toe. Now of course, you do not have to injure yourself to get out, but this guy thought it was such a good idea he shot off his big toe (this was before this war era) . Unfortunately, we need our big toe for balance in order to walk. I got some stories!:crazy:

 

[Atanua]

No doubt Atanua, to lighten the thread with a bit of humor, my Husband had one soldier that decided he wanted out and so he shot off his toe. Now of course, you do not have to injure yourself to get out, but this guy thought it was such a good idea he shot off his big toe (this was before this war era) . Unfortunately, we need our big toe for balance in order to walk. I got some stories!:crazy:

I could tell some stories too LOL. How about attempted suicide with aspirin ...or punch a drill sergeant a couple times. And those are the more 'tame' ones. The toe one isn't so bright.

 

[Deleted member 37334]

I feel the need to comment on them sharing a room. When I was 16, I wanted to move to NH from FL to live with my mom. My father had custody of us since my parents divorced. My brother started college and moved away. Well, my dad decided he would sell his 4 bedroom house to make some money and wanted to buy a foreclosure to fix up and eventually make some money off of that. So, he rented a 2 bedroom condo while he was looking. To make a long story short, I decided to move back home and so did my brother. So, there are now two teenagers and my father having to live in a 2 bedroom. My dad said him and my brother would share a room, but I felt really bad about my father having to share a bedroom so I suggested my brother and I would be in the large master bedroom. We were teenagers so for the most part, we crashed there at night. We had the ability to have privacy since we weren't home together much. There was nothing wrong with it, imo and a few months later my dad bought a new house with 4 bedrooms again. I just wanted to give my perspective since I have experience and feel this sharing the room thing should not have resulted in this monster raping his sister and murdering her. There was obviously something very wrong with him and I doubt them sharing a room had anything to with it.