Jesse Anderson

Case overview

Jesse Anderson was sentenced to life in prison for killing his wife, Barbara. He was later bludgeoned to death in prison on November 28, 1994.

The offence

Jesse Anderson killed his wife, Barbara, who was stabbed 21 times in August 1992. Anderson told police that, while leaving a suburban Milwaukee restaurant, he and his wife were attacked by two Black men. Anderson said the men stabbed him and stabbed his wife in the face and neck and also stabbed her when he tried to defend her. Prosecutors argued that Anderson killed his wife with 21 stab wounds and stabbed himself three times in the chest to divert suspicion.

Investigation

Police were skeptical of Anderson’s account and did not quickly accept it as a simple racist explanation. Richard Knudten, professor of sociology and criminology at Marquette University, said:

"The police did not fall for any racist or easy definition," said Richard Knudten, professor of sociology and criminology at Marquette University. "I think they learned a lesson from the Boston case. They learned they have to assess everything on the basis of fact, not on the basis of emotion."

Two factors led police to focus their investigation on Anderson: lab results from blood samples and information that Anderson had called his wife’s insurance company one month prior to her murder to determine whether her $250,000 policy was in effect. No motive was offered at trial.

The slaying recalled the 1989 murder case involving Charles and Carol Stuart, in which Mr. Stuart told police that he and his pregnant wife were shot by a black man. Carol Stuart died, and police eventually concluded that Mr. Stuart killed his wife to collect $300,000 in life insurance, after which he plunged to his death from a bridge apparently after learning he was a suspect. In Milwaukee, tensions and headlines flared after the killing of Mrs. Anderson, but the police response differed from the Boston case: there were no roundups of black men on street corners or hurried arrests of blacks with prior convictions, and police “pieced together inconsistencies in Mr. Anderson’s testimony and arrested him after his release from the hospital.”

Arrest and charging

After a five-day search for the fictional Black criminals, Anderson was arrested and charged with his wife’s murder. Anderson faced a mandatory life sentence after the verdict.

Trial

The jury took nine hours to reach its verdict. The case was tried in Milwaukee County Circuit Court before Judge Michael Guolee.

At trial, Assistant District Attorney Carol Lynn White said she was reluctant to divert jurors’ attention from what she considered strong physical evidence. The record states:

Assistant District Attorney Carol Lynn White said she was reluctant to divert jurors' attention from what she considered strong physical evidence.

Anderson was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide.

Sentencing

Anderson was sentenced to life in prison. Judge Michael Guolee of Milwaukee County Circuit Court scheduled formal sentencing for Aug. 26.

Outcome

Jesse Anderson died just days after serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Prison officials held 25-year-old Christopher Scarver as the sole suspect in the murders of Dahmer and Anderson. Scarver, who is Black, was being reported as being hostile toward Whites. Since both Dahmer’s and Anderson’s crimes affected Blacks, officials did not rule out racial retaliation.

Anderson died at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison after doctors removed him from life support. A hospital spokesperson, Lisa Brunette, said Anderson died from trauma:

hospital spokesperson Lisa Brunette said

Anderson’s age at death is stated as 37 years old.

Anderson died in the same incident as serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, described as being bludgeoned to death in prison on November 28, 1994.

Aftermath

Mrs. Anderson’s family issued a statement saying her death was ironic. The statement was read by her brother Kevin Lynch:

"What (we) said when Barbara died is as true today as it was then," said the statement read by her brother Kevin Lynch. "No one should have to die such a brutal death."