Every Town - Terrifying Teen Murder Mystery Of Jessie Blodgett In Hartford, WI

Episode Date: January 13, 2023

Nineteen years young, and suddenly gone. It’s a tragedy, and No parent should have to bare the  profound pain and agony of losing theironly daughter. Jessie Blodgett from Hartford, Wisconsin, unfortunately suffered a catastrophic fate at the hands of one of the people closest to her – her ex-boyfriend and best friend Daniel Bartelt. So what could have gone so wrong in their romantic-turned-platonic relationship that led to Jessie’s death? 💥 Watch On Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/scarymysteries🎧 Our Other Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1235579💀 Follow Our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/scarymysteries 💀 Follow Our Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrew.fitzg👁 Follow Our TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewfitzgerald💥 Follow Our Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scarymysteriesofficial🗣 Business Inquiries: [e-mail] Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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No parent should have to bear the profound pain and agony at losing their only daughter. Jesse Blodgett from Hartford, Wisconsin, unfortunately suffered a catastrophic fate at the hands of one of the people closest to her, her ex-boyfriend and best friend, Daniel Bartley. So what could have gone so wrong in their romantic, term platonic relationship that actually led to Jesse's death.

I'm Anna Fitzgerald and thanks for tuning in to another episode of Everytown. Jesse and Daniel, both 19 years old, made headlines in Hartford when the cold-blooded killing of Jesse ran parallel to an assault of another girl in Richfield, Wisconsin. As the investigation of the assault move forward, the truth about Jesse's death was also revealed. And today, we'll get into all the details of this case. Buck and Joy Blodgett were very lucky parents to an immensely talented girl, 19-year-old, only child, Jesse. Growing up in Hartford, Wisconsin, Jesse had always been close to her parents and was well liked by her peers. Her dad,

Buck said, of their close bond, we talked about drugs, we talked about sex, it was nothing off limits. But there is one thing about the teenage girl or parents took so much pride in. It was Jesse's abundant talent in music. It was while going to Hartford Union High School that Jesse's musical abilities were honed, but she became something of a star in their small town. Jesse's dad said she'd always been a standout. She was brilliant, said Mr. Blodgett.

In first grade, the teacher, created her own curriculum for Jesse, and the class's spelling words were and and the. Jesse's first one was metamorphosis, an anesthesiologist. Jesse used her brilliance to pursue many passions as she grew up from fighting for animal rights to anti-violence against women and social equality. But in the end, her love for music prevailed. Undeniably, Miss Blodgett was a talented stage actor and gifted musician. She discovered her passion for the arts at a young age, felting her heart out and choir and enrolling in every theater class possible during her school years. She had lofty dreams too. She wanted to become a choir director, touch as many lives as possible, and use music to impact others and actually change the world.

After high school, Jesse attended the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee on a scholarship and music education. Jesse also worked part-time at a restaurant, as well as opened her own business, teaching piano, violin, and giving vocal lessons to children from her home in Hartford. But Jesse wasn't the only student in high school with exceptional musical talent. It was also Daniel Bartlett, who was Jesse's classmate and close friend. All throughout high school, they sat next to one another, and they formed an admirable friendship. One of Jesse's friends Jacqueline Knights had only good words to say about Dan. He was outgoing, smart, and loved to crack jokes.

Mr. and Mrs. Blodgett also had a high appreciation for Dan, saying that he was a gifted violinist. He was first chair and Jesse was second chair. Jesse and Dan will be playing and collaborating with their musical talents a lot of the time. They had the talent to make up a powerful musical duo, and their constant togetherness made it possible for a romance to actually develop a them. According to Buck, they dated for about three to four months during freshman year in high school. But Dan broke up with Jess, and after high school they went their separate ways but still remained

friends. One day in 2013, Jesse learned that Dan dropped out of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, which surprised her as he was a straight-a-student. He then became depressed and withdrawn. But going back to Hartford opened up the opportunity for the two ex-lovers to reconnect. Daniel, who was already in a long-term relationship with somebody else, still had feelings for Jesse, but she was only interested in a friendship. Regardless, they wrote and recorded a song together. And weeks after posting it on YouTube, they were in the spotlight for bagging, starring

roles in the local productions of Bye Bye Birdie for Dan, and as the fiddler and fiddler of the roof for Jesse. July 14, 2013, was a memorable night for Jesse. Jesse. She performed to a full-packed house on opening weekend, so it was a cause to celebrate after the show. Jesse and her castmates excitedly went to the cast party, but her ecstatic feelings of headlining a successful show was betrayed by some uneasiness brought about by two older men in attendance at the party. When Jesse got home at around 1 a.m. on July 15th, she then talked to her mother about concerns involving some people in the cast who were flirting with her.

She then wrote her thoughts down in her diary that early morning, and some parts read, I think I'm being corrupted. I think certain men are taking what should be, platonic love and perverting it into a competition. I'm not helpless. I will recognize problems and confront them without fear, God be with me. After that, Jesse went to sleep. Buck woke up early and headed to work while Joy followed suit at 8 a.m. She left a basket of laundry in Jesse's room before leaving and checked on her daughter, who was still asleep. Joy usually went home for lunch, and on that particular day, Alice was quiet when she arrived.

She thought Jesse might still be sleeping, tired from last night's festivities. By 12.30 p.m., a student arrived at Jesse's home for a piano lesson, so Joy went upstairs to wake Jesse up. But up there, she was greeted by an unimaginable scenario. Jesse was on that bed, face down, completely blue and cold. The hapless mom became hysterical and frantically dialed 911 telling the dispatcher of the scene in Jesse's room. Joy told the dispatcher, she thought Jesse wasn't breathing. Her clothes and hair were wet.

When Joy rolled her over, Jesse seemed to have ligature marks from strangulation. Sadly, the talented young lady was lifeless when EMS arrived at the Blodgett house. And basically, so was Buck who wasn't allowed to come near his daughter after she was cordoned off by investigators. He said, They wouldn't let me upstairs, so I couldn't see her, I couldn't touch her, I couldn't say goodbye. I couldn't tell her I loved her, and I couldn't tell her I was sorry for not being there when she needed her dad. Hartford Police Detective Richard Thicken's said that they found Jesse with very obvious marks on her neck and wrists that could have been binding marks. Authorities very quickly believe that it was a homicide case.

Joy also pointed out that Jesse's clothes and hair were wet, which investigators surmised her attacker did, as they washed off her body before putting her back to bed and covering her up. But the immediate question was, who would have wanted to harm? a kind, gentle, and good-hearted person, let alone kill her in the confines of her own bedroom. It didn't take long for the investigators to stumble upon their first clue, though. It was written right in Jesse's journal. She wrote about two men who had recently sexually harassed her. One was a co-worker at the restaurant, and the other was an older man who had attempted to pull her onto his lap at the cast party the night before.

And the latter even called in sick to work the day Jesse was killed. making him look even more suspicious. But, as it turned out, both men had solid alibis and were quickly dismissed by authorities as the killer. After thoroughly searching for clues in Jesse's room, investigators found a roll of tape underneath her bed, which they suspected the killer had dropped unknowingly. They sent that roll of tape in for forensic testing,

hoping that it would bear more clues into Jesse's murder. With other detectives knowing, a more leading, clue awaited them as another incident in the neighboring village of Richfield was unfolding. Police there were eyeing a perpetrator of a different assault of a different victim named Melissa Etzler. Three days before the unfortunate murder of Jesse, Melissa encountered an attack while walking her dog in Richfield's historic park. An unknown man with a knife to tackle her from behind. Suddenly Melissa was faced down in the fight for her life with her attacker on top of her. Thankfully, though, Melissa was able to disarm the man and take the knife, but not without hurting her right hand with six cuts that required 15 stitches.

Bizarrely, the man then requested permission to leave asking, Can I go? He got off Melissa, ran to his vehicle, and after that drove on. Fortunately, Melissa got a close look at him and gave a detailed description of the man of the police. He was a white male with light blonde hair, standing six foot two, when... about 210 pounds, roughly between the ages of 18 and 20, wearing a hat, sunglasses, plaid shorts, and driving a blue Dodge caravan. Melissa's courage was commended by the detectives, and little did she know that it paved the way for Jesse and her family to achieve justice.

Based on her description of that suspect, police released a composite sketch to the media, but they didn't receive any tips. However, a deputy had seen the Dodge Caravan a month earlier in the same park and actually marked the plate. When it was searched, it was found out that it was registered to the parents of 19-year-old Daniel Bartlett, Jesse Blodgett's ex-boyfriend and childhood friend. The plot thickened from there, and the twist would soon catch everybody off guard. Two days after Jesse was slain, Dan received a call from Richfield Detectives to come in for questioning. Jesse's parents told him not to worry, as it was normal, to talk to friends.

At that time, he was at Jesse's vigil. Of course, at that point, no one there even knew about the attack on Melissa Etzler, except for Dan himself and the authorities. At the interview, detectives asked Dan where he was coming from if he was at the vigil. They were curious to know what happened to Jesse. And then, matter-of-factly, Daniel blurted out, I think someone raped and murdered her. It raised some suspicions because the results of Jesse's autopsies at that moment hadn't been released yet, so how could he know of what happened?

The conversation between Dan and the detectives was recorded. It was actually about the assault case in the park, and not about Jesse, as Dan had thought. When asked about his whereabouts, the Friday Melissa was attacked in the park, Dan denied knowing about the assault and came up with an alibi that, He was with his girlfriend at the time. When the detective noticed it cut on his thumb and scrapes on his arms, Dan said he got injured at work. But the detectives had already known he was out of the job, lied to his parents, and was only pretending to go to work. When detectives further pushed him to tell how his thumb got injured, Dan eventually admitted that he was the one that attacked Melissa. He explained that he went after her because he wanted to scare someone.

He explained that since he had dropped out of college, he felt frightened of life itself. He just wanted someone else to feel the same way. It was a confession, completed with a motive. Dan's blood was found on multiple items in the park, as well as a roll of duct tape, which matched the same tape at the house of Jesse. And of course, Melissa was their star witness. She said, They had me do a lineup.

Right when I saw his face, I'm like, Yeah, that's him. 100%. As Daniel was placed under arrest and transported to Washington County jail, Richfield detectives reflected on his unprovoked statement that Jesse was raped and murder, despite no one yet knowing that her death was the result of a murder. So coincidentally, had they met Jesse's killer while pursuing Melissa's case. Finally, on July 17th, Jesse's autopsy results were completed and released.

The cause of death stated was strangulation and it was also determined that she had been raped, as Daniel had told the detectives a day prior. Immediately, Hartford detectives questioned Daniel, who said he didn't know Jesse had died despite telling police he had been to the vigil. Daniel stated that the day Jesse was killed on July 15th, he lied to his parents, at he was going to work and left the house at 6.30 a.m. Instead, he went to Woodland Union Park. Detective Search garbage cans at that park and recover bloody paper towels and antiseptic wipes, tape, two climbing ropes, a homemade gag ball, and a bloody beach towel.

The climbing ropes match ligature marks on Jesse's neck, wrists, and ankles, and contain both her and Daniel's DNA. But the most incriminating piece of evidence was Daniel's DNA, which was found underneath Jesse's fingernails and his sperm inside of her. On his computer, detectives found searches of serial killers, bondage, and strangulation, along with a novel he was writing titled, Red is Red. At which a girl named Jessica is bludgeon to death by a character named D. Inside Daniel's closet was a pair of bloodstained plaid shorts that he wore the day he attacked Jesse. There were also pieces of tape covered in human hair that belonged to her, with all these overwhelming pieces of forensic evidence.

Daniel's fate was then sealed. During the trial, the prosecution said that Daniel's motive was to fulfill his sexual urges, and Jesse was an easy target because they were close and she trusted him. Daniel Bartlett was charged with first-degree intentional homicide for Jesse's murder, and he pleaded not guilty, but was convicted by a jury after only three hours of deliberation. He was also charged with first-degree reckless endangerment and false imprisonment regarding Melissa's. his attack. Daniel was then sentenced to life in prison without parole. He never admitted to the heinous crime he committed against his former high school sweetheart and

close friend, and neither was he sorry for assaulting Melissa. Following his conviction, Daniel issued a statement to Jesse's parents while still pleading his innocence. He said, I can't give you the reasons you are looking for. There's no hiding from yourself and a tiny concrete cell. This jumpsuit that I'm wearing, these shackles don't make me guilty. I know there's evidence that I can't refute and make you believe that I am guilty. Daniel is currently serving his sentence at the Woppen Correctional Institution in Wisconsin. But the nagging question still remains.

Why did he kill Jesse, who was his close friend and former girlfriend? Take it from Mr. Blodgett, who said, Personally, I don't like labels, but I think he's a sociopath. I think he has no empathy. I think he's brilliant and talented, like many sociopaths. They're calculating, they learn how to fit in and blend. There was also a prevailing theory, and the big reason Daniel killed Jesse was just to satisfy a sick urge.

Anger, hatred, rage, any parent of a murdered child might be feeling all these things, but when it was Buck's turn to speak in court, he said to Daniel, I forgive you, as I have every single day since we found out it was you. I believe there's good and bad in every one of us, so I don't demonize or vilify you. Mr. Blodgett has decided to honor Jesse's memory by starting a non-profit organization called The Love is Greater Than Hate Project, which has the mission to end violence against women, and to have all people inspired, educated, and motivated to choose love over hate. Shirley Jesse wouldn't have it any other way in preserving her legacy in short but meaningful life.

So that's going to do it, guys, for this week's episode of Everytown. Remember, you can go check us out on YouTube at our Scary Mysteries channel, and there's also other videos over there if you want to see those. Remember to tune in next week for another episode. filled with scary, strange, and mysterious stories. As you never know, maybe your town will be next.