In the late summer of 1995, the life of 16-year-old Jessica Payne, a Caucasian female, was tragically cut short in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. On August 30, 1995, her body was discovered underneath a mattress behind an abandoned house. She had been sexually assaulted, and her throat was slashed. Jessica, who was about to start her junior year of high school, had run away from home on August 26, 1995, following a fight with another girl.
She and a 13-year-old friend ended up at a house known for prostitution and drug activities. After leaving with four men, Jessica expressed a desire to go home and was dropped off at a street corner, which was the last time she was seen alive by her friend.
The investigation into Jessica's murder quickly focused on three men: Chaunte D. Ott, Sam Hadaway, and Richard Gwin. A month after the discovery of Jessica's body, a jailhouse informant implicated Gwin. Under what was later described as "improper and undue pressure" from police, Gwin falsely implicated himself, Ott, and Hadaway. Hadaway, who had cerebral palsy and cognitive disabilities, was also coerced by police into providing a false confession that implicated Ott as the one who sexually assaulted and killed Jessica. Based almost solely on the coerced testimonies of Gwin and Hadaway, Chaunte Ott was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. Hadaway, in a plea deal, pleaded guilty to attempted robbery and served five years.
Years later, the case took a dramatic turn. In 2002, the Wisconsin Innocence Project successfully petitioned for DNA testing on the vaginal swabs taken from Jessica's body. The DNA profile did not match Ott, Gwin, or Hadaway. It took several more years, but in 2007, the DNA was matched to a serial killer, Walter Ellis, also known as the "Milwaukee North Side Strangler," who was responsible for a string of other murders. This new evidence led to the reversal of Ott's conviction, and he was released from prison after serving over 12 years for a crime he did not commit. He later received a $6.5 million settlement from the City of Milwaukee for his wrongful conviction. Sam Hadaway's conviction was also overturned, and the charges against him were dismissed in 2019. Walter Ellis was eventually arrested in 2009 and pleaded no contest to seven murders; he died in prison in 2013. While his DNA was found on Jessica Payne, he was never formally charged in her death. The case stands as a stark example of a flawed investigation that led to the wrongful imprisonment of innocent men, while the real killer remained free for years.
