Jesse Timmendequas

Jesse K. Timmendequas (born April 15, 1961) is a convicted murderer who on July 29, 1994 raped and murdered his neighbor, seven-year-old Megan Kanka, in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. The murder led the New Jersey Legislature to pass Megan's Law, which requires convicted sex offenders to notify the local police department when they move into a neighborhood.

Earlier criminal history and treatment

In 1979, Timmendequas pleaded guilty to the attempted aggravated sexual assault of a five-year-old girl in Piscataway Township, New Jersey. He was given a suspended sentence but, after failing to go to counseling, he was sent for nine months at the Middlesex Adult Correctional Center. In 1981, he pleaded guilty in regards to the sexual assault of a seven-year-old girl, and was imprisoned at the Adult Diagnostic & Treatment Center (ADTC) in Avenel, New Jersey for six years.

Timmendequas reportedly participated little in the treatment program offered at the ADTC. He was described by one therapist who treated him at the facility as a "whiner" who spent most of his time sleeping. Another therapist stated that she had believed that Timmendequas would eventually commit another sex crime (although she did not believe he would commit murder). [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9C0DE3D61139F93BA15756C0A960958260 STRANGER ON THE BLOCK -- At Center of 'Megan's Law' Case, a Man No One Could Reach] ]

Murder of Megan Kanka

Timmendequas lived with two other convicted sex offenders across the street from his victim. He lured the girl into his house by offering to show her a puppy. After raping her, he slammed her head onto a dresser, put two plastic bags over her head, and strangled her to death with a belt. He moved her body to his truck, assaulting her once again before placing her in a wooden toy chest and dumping it in nearby Mercer County Park. The next day, he confessed to investigators and led police to the site of the body. Evidence including bloodstains, hair, and fiber samples, as well as a bite mark matching Megan Kanka's teeth on Timmendequas' hand, led to Timmendequas being found guilty of kidnapping, four counts of aggravated sexual assault, and two counts of felony murder.

Congressman Dick Zimmer stated, "I believe he is exactly the kind of predator that the legislature had in mind when it enacted the death penalty." The court sentenced Timmendequas to death, and the sentence was upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court on appeal. [ [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70E15FA3E5A0C718CDDAB0894D9404482&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fPeople%2fT%2fTimmendequas%2c%20Jesse%20K%2e Death Penalty Is Upheld in 'Megan' Case] ] Timmendequas remained on New Jersey's Death Row until December 17, 2007, when the New Jersey Legislature abolished the state's death penalty. This ban resulted in Timmendequas' sentence being commuted to life in prison without parole. [ [http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/13/nj.death.penalty/index.html New Jersey lawmakers vote to abolish death penalty - CNN.com ] ]

As of 2008 Timmendequas is incarcerated at New Jersey State Prison in Trenton.

ee also

*Dante Arthurs

References

4. http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/17/death.penalty/index.html

External links

* [http://www.pennlive.com/specialprojects/expresstimes/index.ssf?/news/expresstimes/stories/molesters5_mainbar.html The Express Times, "Megan's legacy, A child's death serves as a call to action" February 26, 2004]
* [http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/predators/kanka/1.html CourtTV Crime Library Article on Megan Kanka]
* [https://www6.state.nj.us/DOC_Inmate/details?x=1044410&n=6 Offender Details] . "New Jersey Department of Corrections". Retrieved on 2007-11-16.