Last Updated on: 12th December 2022, 10:44 pm
Who is Jade Janks? Biography, Wiki
Jade Janks is accused of killing her estranged stepfather after finding nude photos of her on her computer and has pleaded not guilty to the murder.
Janks is a suspect in the murder of Thomas Merriman, 64, co-founder of Butterfly Farms, a nonprofit research and education organization in Encinitas, California dedicated to butterfly conservation, according to The San Diego Union-Grandstand.
Jade Janks Age
Her current age is 39 years.
Accused Of Killing Her Stepfather
Janks reportedly confessed to two people, including a “fixer” who he went to for help, after Merriman’s murder, but they never went to the scene, prosecutors said.
“I just dosed it,” the fixer is said to have admitted, reported KGTV-TV.
A second person who Janks allegedly trusted called 911 to report the alleged murder. According to The Coast News, authorities discovered Merriman’s body under a pile of rubbish in his driveway on 1st January 2021.
What Was The Trial?
The trial of Janks, an interior designer from Solana Beach, California, began Wednesday, according to the outlet. During the opening statement, prosecutors argued that Janks drugged, strangled, and smothered Merriman with a plastic bag on New Year’s Eve 2020 after finding his risqué photos on her computer while cleaning her room after being hospitalized for a fall was admitted, reports The Coast News.
The discovery left them “deeply concerned” and prompted them to stage his murder, prosecutors said, according to the newspaper. Although Janks’ mother is no longer married to Merriman, Janks has remained close to him, reports The Coast News.
The defense argued that Merriman’s death was his own, suggesting that a fatal dose of prescription pills had killed him. Citing the coroner, they said he died of acute Ambien poisoning, the outlet reports.
“Jade Janks loved her stepfather,” said her attorney Marc Carlos, who did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment, according to KGTV.
“Tom Merriman adored Jade Janks. Unfortunately, Tom Merriman was in trouble and loved her in different ways. Janks’ trial is currently ongoing. If convicted, she faces a life sentence.”