Woman found strangled to death and her body burned. A decade later, police still don't know who killed her.
Jennifer Leeann Law was a mother, sister and friend. She was last seen at a fair in the Knoxville, Tennessee, area in 2007. The next day, investigators found her body killed and partially burned.
More than a decade later, police still ask for help finding her killer.
“There’s not a day that goes by we don’t think of her,” Law’s daughter Ciera Law told Knoxville police for a video the agency shared on social media about the case.
On Sept. 15, 2007, Jennifer Law’s body was found in a secluded area, police Investigator Clayton Madison said. She had bruises on her face and there was evidence of signs of a struggle, he added. Her body was partially burned, and the cause of death was strangulation.
Madison said it could have been a fight that got out of control that led to Jennifer Law’s death.
“There was a struggle of some sort,” he said.
The burning led police to believe the suspect was trying to cover up evidence of their crime, Madison said.
Jennifer Law was known to spend time in areas of drug dealing and might have been working as a prostitute, Madison said. Witnesses reported seeing her in a black truck or a gold Toyota Corolla before her death. Those vehicles are similar to ones used by a drug dealer known as “Black.”
Investigators tried to speak to “Black” the day after the killing, but he refused, Madison said. Police have not found him in the years since.
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“She wasn’t just some girl running around on the streets,” Ciera Law said. “She did love us, and she showed us that up to the day she died.”
Ciera Law said her mom was known as Leeann, Leelee or Pocahontas. Her mom was one of seven siblings and Ciera said she remembers learning about her passing from her father.
“I remember dropping to my knees, screaming, yelling,” Ciera Law recalled.
Her mom has missed seeing her grandkids grow up, Ciera Law said. It also meant Ciera was forced to learn about life from her aunt and other relatives instead of her mom.
Police ask for the public’s help in solving the cold case. Anyone with information or who knows “Black” is asked to contact (865) 215-7212. If people spoke to investigators immediately after Law’s death, they are still encouraged to contact police.
“[We hope] that someone will find it in their heart to help us out to give us the information we need to put this side,” Ciera Law said, “and to put our hearts at ease.”
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