Life sentence for Isanti man in Minneapolis woman's brutal 1993 killing

A 56-year-old Isanti man was sentenced Friday to life in prison for the 1993 cold case killing of Jeanne "Jeanie" Childs — at once capping a three-decade-old search for justice for her family and starting a long appeals process for a businessman and hockey dad who maintains his innocence.

Hennepin County District Judge Juan Hoyos imposed the state's harshest sentence on Jerry Westrom following last month's jury conviction for first- and second-degree murder. The judge did so after hearing from Childs' family, many of whom wore "We got justice 4 Jeanie" T-shirts.

"I waited so many years to have this end, and it put my life through so much hell," said Betty Gertrude Eackman, Childs' mother.

Westrom, who has been jailed since his Aug. 25 conviction, will not be eligible for parole until he has served 30 years in prison. Wearing a suit and tie, he sat silently with his hands clasped before him while listening to Childs' family and as Hoyos handed down his sentence. Westrom chose not to speak Friday and did not testify at trial.

Childs was found brutally stabbed to death in her south Minneapolis apartment in June 1993. DNA collected from a hot dog napkin at a hockey game that matched a hit from a genealogy website led to Westrom's 2019 arrest.

Like the trial that preceded it, Friday's hearing packed a Hennepin County courtroom in downtown Minneapolis with members from both Childs' and Westrom's families.

Hoyos acknowledged the "pain and anguish" experienced by both sides of the courtroom gallery throughout the process before he sentenced Westrom.

"I'm well aware that this case has not just affected your life but theirs, too," Hoyos said of Westrom and his family. "However, you took Jeanie Childs' opportunity of a life. She was not able to continue to be with her family to provide her love to her family, and she was deprived of receiving that love."

Steve Meshbesher, Westrom's attorney, has argued that Childs' boyfriend, Arthur Gray, killed her. At trial, he argued that the Gray's hair was found in her left hand and that he was alleged to have had a history of abusing Childs. The apartment was leased to Gray and Childs allegedly used it for prostitution. Gray has since died.

Prosecutors meanwhile leaned on forensic evidence to convict Westrom. Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Darren Borg told jurors last month that Westrom's semen was found on Childs' bed comforter, his DNA was found on bloody items throughout the apartment, and he left a bare footprint with Childs' blood just inches from her "lifeless, hacked, nearly disemboweled body."

Borg said Childs was stabbed 65 times all along her torso and neck.

Meshbesher said Friday he would seek a new trial through an appeal directly to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which is allowed for first-degree murder convictions. He took issue with Hoyos' refusal to allow evidence that Gray assaulted Childs just months before her murder.

The attorney described his unsuccessful attempts to admit testimony from multiple witnesses who could cast doubt on the prosecution's theory.

Meshbesher wanted to call a man allegedly scheduled for an appointment for sex on the afternoon that Childs died as well as testimony from a man linked to blood stains found in the stairwell of Childs' apartment. Meshbesher added that a man whose DNA was also found on Childs' comforter is now serving a life sentence for the murder of a woman that occurred 13 months after Childs' killing.

Meshbesher added that he was barred from bringing in testimony from an expert who would state that the bloody footprints inside Childs' apartment did not match Westrom's, as well as testimony from a neighbor of Childs who had a prior conviction for criminal sexual conduct. That neighbor, Meshbesher said, was arrested the day after Childs' murder for threatening people inside the apartment building with a hunting knife.

"As we've said from the beginning: You've got the wrong guy," Meshbesher said. "We are sorry for the loss of Jeanie Childs' life and we are looking forward to Jerry Westrom's exoneration from the Minnesota Supreme Court."

Westrom's family did not speak in court, nor did relatives elect to address reporters gathered inside the Hennepin County Government Center on Friday.

Eackman did not express surprise upon learning of Westrom's plans to appeal, later telling reporters that she believed he would never take responsibility for her daughter's murder.

Eackman was joined by Melissa Ann Beaulieu, Childs' niece, who was 9 when she learned of her aunt's brutal killing. Earlier Friday, she tearfully described to the judge how that news rocked her and instantly made the world a "darker, scarier place."

Through remarks read into the record by a Hennepin County victims advocate, Childs' sister Cindy Kosnitch acknowledged Westrom's family's sadness in addition to her own. It was important to remember, she added, "no one wins" in this case.

Staff writer Kim Hyatt contributed to this report.