Episode 31- Footprints in Blood: The Murder of Jeanie Childs
Jeanie Childs, 35 years old, was found murdered in her high rise Minneapolis apartment on June 13th, 1993. At the scene there were multiple DNA profiles found, but went unmatched until 2015 when forensic scientists used genealogy websites to help uncover potential suspects.
A unique piece of evidence was that there were bloody footprints next to the apartment window. It was determined that these were the footprints of the perpetrator and not Jeanie.
Through genealogical searches, Jerry Westrom’s DNA was found as one of the profiles at the scene. His DNA had been repeated on multiple items found at the crime scene. Eventually two forensic scientists would determine the bloody footprints were a match to Jerry Westrom. But did he really commit this heinous crime? There were other DNA profiles in the apartment that caused the authorities to do some more digging. They got a few hits and investigated those leads. Ultimately Jerry went on trial for the death and murder of Jeanie Childs. He was convicted of 1st and 2nd degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.
The information presented in this episode is from sources from the most reliable accounts available on the web, including information on The “Footprint” Post Mortem:
The “Footprint” Post Mortem
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBhCdY2g8UY
An article from 48 hours - CBS News
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeanie-childs-murder-minneapolis-crime-scene-clue-barefoot-killer-48-hours/
An episode of 48 hours:
48 hours - Season 47, Episode 55, “The Footprint” - now playing on Paramount +
Photos include: Jeanie Childs (top) Arthur Gray with Jeanie, another photo of Jeanie (Bottom)
