Wisconsin home where Jayme Closs was kidnapped and her parents slain is torn down

The bank that owned the property had it demolished Tuesday.

August 7, 2019 at 3:15AM
Barron County Sheriff's remained at the scene of the home where 13-year-old Jayme Closs lived with her parents James, and Denise Wednesday October 17, 2018 in Barron, Wisconsin.
The home outside Barron, Wis., where 13-year-old Jayme Closs lived with her parents James, and Denise, pictured in October. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The house where Jayme Closs was kidnapped and her parents slain has been torn down.

The bank that owns the house had it demolished Tuesday, erasing the property outside Barron, Wis., where the 13-year-old was abducted and her parents, James and Denise, were murdered last fall.

Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald confirmed that his agency released the crime scene back to the estate several months ago. The bank that owns the house, which sits about 2 miles outside of town, consulted the surviving relatives before tearing it down.

"Whatever the Closs family wants is what I want," Fitzgerald said. "I knew they didn't want to go back there, so it's probably the right thing to do."

Jake Patterson, 22, is serving life without parole for the killings. He forced his way into their home Oct. 15 to abduct Jayme after developing an obsession over her.

Patterson held Jayme captive for nearly three months before she escaped in January.

James and Denise Closs, and daughter Jayme.
James and Denise Closs, and daughter Jayme. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
about the writer

about the writer

Liz Sawyer

Reporter

Liz Sawyer  covers Minneapolis crime and policing at the Star Tribune. Since joining the newspaper in 2014, she has reported extensively on Minnesota law enforcement, state prisons and the youth justice system. 

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