Photo: Instagram
Her murder has been unsolved for over a year. Could there be a break in the case?
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Apr 18, 2019
On April 17, 2018, Jeannie Quinn’s family members received news that no family ever wants to hear: her body was found in a field in Abilene, Texas. According to the local ABC affiliate KTXS, a hard wire was twisted around her neck, and she was hanging from a tree in a forest near Arnold Boulevard and Marigold Street in the town.
The gruesome nature of her murder prompted the local area police to launch a full and complete investigation almost immediately after her body was found. However, despite their best efforts, and more than a year after her body was found, there seems to be no sign of a “break” in the case — no leads on a possible murder suspect — and no sign of justice for the young woman who was taken too soon.
Here, however, is what we know about Jeannie Quinn — and her murder case — so far. Who is Jeannie Quinn?
1. It was originally classified as accidental asphyxiation.
When Jeannie Quinn’s body was originally found, KTXS reported that while her death was considered “suspicious,” it wasn’t immediately classified as a homicide. She’d originally been reported as “missing” on Sunday, April 16, 2018, by her family, who hadn’t heard from her in a few days. “Due to the nature of where the body was located, and other circumstances, detectives are working this as a suspicious death,” said KTXS.
2. Someone was previously named as a “person of interest.”
According to local NBC affiliate KCBD, shortly after Jeannie Quinn’s body was found, 56-year-old Ricky Don Henderson was named as a “person of interest” in connection to her death. Jeannie, who was just 20 at the time of her murder, was dating Henderson at the time, and he was the last person to see her alive. While it’s not uncommon for boyfriends/husbands to be interviewed as a “person of interest” in a murder investigation — and, statistically speaking, women die at the hands of their intimate partners more often than not — many people immediately believed that Henderson was responsible for Jeannie Quinn’s murder. However, after interviewing him, police did not believe that he was responsible for her death.
3. It’s difficult for investigators to solve the case because Jeannie Quinn is not from the area.
According to Big Country, one of the main reasons why investigators are having difficulty solving the Jeannie Quinn murder is because neither Jeannie, nor her family, are from the Abilene area. For this reason, investigators are frequently asking the public for their help in solving the Jeannie Quinn murder. They ask the public — as they have for the past year — to call their offices with any information that they think will help solve the murder.
4. A generous reward is available for anyone who has information that will “crack the case.”
When someone is murdered, and investigators have difficulty solving the case, the family of the murder victim often finds themselves raising money to incentivize the public to help solve the case. And the Jeannie Quinn murder case is no different — according to a different report for Big Country, the Quinn family has raised more than $11,000 for any information that will help Abilene investigators “crack the case. “The family is offering a $10,000.00 reward. This reward has increased to $11,645.00 through a Gofundme campaign set up by Jeannie’s family. We are pleading with the public for information so we can get Justice for Jeannie and possibly spare another innocent victim and family. The tip-line for Jeannie’s murder remains active, (325) 676-6598,” said John Quinn, Jeannie’s uncle.
5. Her family is devastated.
Regardless of the how or why of Jeannie Quinn’s murder, the facts remain the same: her family is completely devastated about the fact that her life was taken so brutally, and at such a young age.
"Instead of celebrating her birthday, we are here grieving and fighting for justice, to make sure Jeannie doesn't become another statistic as her murderer remains out there walking the streets," John Quinn exclusively told USA Today. "We are confident someone from either Levelland or Abilene will have information. We are pleading with the public for information that can help get justice for Jeannie and possibly spare another innocent victim and their family."
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Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. Find her online at www.bernadettegiacomazzo.com and www.longlivetheuprising.com.