Date of Birth
December 22, 1979
Date of Death
October 4, 2010
Location
Ione, Oregon
Cause of Death
Homicide
Who She Was
Her Story
Jessica’s body was found in a field at an unoccupied residence on a farm near the small northeastern Oregon town of Ione. She was from Heppner or Hermiston. A farm employee reported finding the body on October 4, 2010. The Morrow/Umatilla County Major Crime team (made up of multiple law enforcement agencies), and the Oregon State Police is investigating her death as suspicious. They believe that she was killed between October 1 and 4. Her body had a gunshot wound. A Morrow County reserve deputy is behind bars for the murder. A spokesman for the Oregon Department of Justice says Steven Montie Crum was arrested the morning of October 8 during a traffic stop, in Burns, Harney County, Oregon. An arrest warrant had been put out for him the prior day. His first court appearance will be October 11, 2010 in Morrow County. The rural property where Jessica’s body was found is owned by the Crum family. It has been reported that Jessica worked at the Pheasant Cafe & Lounge in Hermiston, which had been robbed of $1,000 a few days before her body was found. As well, it is reported that a large amount of money was found with her body. Reportedly, the last time her family heard from her was the morning of October 2, when the bar theft supposedly occurred. Authorities have not disclosed whether or not the theft and murder are related. Jessica leaves one child, an eight-year-old daughter, who remains in Hawaii, where Jessica used to live.