On February 16, 2014, the community of Lemay in Saint Louis County, Missouri, was shaken by the violent death of 40-year-old White female Wendy Hall-Onkle. A dedicated mother and a known advocate for childhood cancer awareness following the loss of her young son, Wendy was found deceased early that Sunday morning. Authorities were called to the scene around 1:50 a.m. after reports of a shooting.
Upon arrival at a residence on the 100 block of Mann Street, police discovered Wendy’s body, marking the tragic end to a family dispute that had escalated into lethal violence.
The events leading to the homicide began earlier that evening and centered around a disagreement regarding a bachelorette party. Wendy’s niece, 23-year-old Jamie Onkle, had argued with Wendy and her husband, Johnny Onkle, about attending the celebration. Reports indicated that Jamie refused to go because she disliked the future groom. The conflict intensified when Jamie, who had been out drinking, returned to the Onkle residence. According to Johnny Onkle, he asked his niece to leave, at which point she allegedly threw a nearly full beer can in his face and dumped the contents of Wendy’s purse onto the floor before departing. Later that night, after returning from the bachelorette party and learning of the altercation, Wendy went to Jamie’s home on Mann Street to confront her niece.
It was during this confrontation at Jamie Onkle’s residence that the situation turned deadly. An argument ensued between the two women, culminating in Jamie producing a firearm and shooting her aunt. When St. Louis County police arrived, they found Wendy dead from a gunshot wound. Jamie Onkle was taken into custody at the scene without further incident. The killing left the family in shock, with Wendy’s husband expressing disbelief that a close family member they had supported could commit such an act.
Following the arrest, prosecutors charged Jamie Onkle with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. She was held on a $250,000 cash-only bond as the case moved through the legal system. In March 2016, more than two years after the shooting, the legal proceedings concluded when Jamie Onkle entered a guilty plea to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter, as well as armed criminal action. Under the terms of the plea, she faced a sentence of five to fifteen years for the manslaughter charge and a minimum of three years for the armed criminal action charge.
