Date night, sex, a fight, murder.
AB Wire
WASHINGTON, DC: A date night for two lesbian lovers from Virginia Tech that began on a disappointing note, but perked up with hot sex, and then again limped to abysmal depths with a fight after one admitted to the other that she was just “experimenting” with her sexuality, ended in murder last year in February, in Virginia.
The perpetrator of that crime, Jessica Michelle Ewing, 24, a former Virginia Tech student and Corps of Cadets member, was sentenced to 45 in prison after an eight-hour sentencing hearing on Monday, for the murder of Nepali American Samanata Shrestha, 21, who was a student too from Virginia Tech.
The Roanoke Times reported Judge Robert Turk sentenced Ewing to 80 years for first-degree murder and five years for transporting and concealing a body. After Ewing serves 45 years, the rest will be suspended. She will be on probation for 20 years after her release. Ewing was facing a minimum of 20 years and up to life in prison on the first-degree murder charge. Montgomery County Commonwealth’s Attorney Mary Pettitt recommended a life sentence Monday.
Related Story: Nepali American 21-year-old student Samanata Shrestha murdered at Virginia Tech
People reported Ewing admitted in court to being disappointed when she showed up at Shrestha’s apartment wearing a dress and carrying whipped cream and wine, only to find Shrestha in casual sweat pants.
The evening got better though after they had the wine, and ended up having sex. But things turned sour when Ewing made what she called a “poor teasing comment,” calling Shrestha a “spoiled b—-.”
The two began to fight and Ewing ended up strangling Shrestha after she said she was just “experimenting” with Ewing.
“I loved Sam – I couldn’t believe she would say that I was some experiment to her,” Ewing said. “It hit me where I was most hurt.”
In February, Ewing entered an Alford plea to the first-degree murder of Shrestha, the Associated Press reported. An Alford plea is when a defendant does not admit guilt, but acknowledges the prosecution has enough evidence to prove them guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to Ewing, she met Shrestha through school in the fall of 2013 and struck up conversations as they were waiting for their classes, reported the Times. Ewing was a fishery sciences and biology major, and Shrestha was a biology major.
According to Ewing, there was no plan or premeditation to kill Shrestha that night, like the commonwealth had previously alleged. Texts were previously introduced that were sent to one of Ewing’s friends the night before the killing, which read, “I can’t stop this idea, it slowly creeped its way to consume my black heart. I want to let someone else decide, but ive (sic) already etched it in history.”
“I didn’t have any plan. I had no intent to kill Sam,” Ewing testified.
Alternatively, Ewing said that the text in question was regarding her own struggles with her sexuality. Ewing has said that that she and Shrestha were “exploring” their sexuality. Scott Masselli, Shrestha’s boyfriend, confirmed that he knew they had kissed on at least two occasions.
“I made the most horrible decision to cover it all up to hide it,” Ewing said. “I wish I had just called 911, but at that point it was too late.”
Also during her testimony Monday, Ewing spent time explaining her own personal tragedies. She said she had been sexually assaulted as a child and was raped while at a party at Virginia Tech in 2013. Adding to Ewing’s problems, she said she was kicked out of the Corps of Cadets after she was accused of hazing a student during a routine physical training exercise.
Related Story: Female roommate allegedly shot dead Samanata Shrestha, two men then stuffed corpse into her car
Several times throughout the hearing, Ewing expressed remorse for her actions.
“She [Shrestha] was an amazing person and she should still be here today,” Ewing said through tears before sentencing was pronounced. “If I could change it all I would. She was a huge light in a lot of people’s lives.”
According to sentencing guidelines, the use of a weapon would have affected the amount of time Ewing would be sentenced to serve. However, Turk said ultimately, that whether Shrestha was strangled with manual or ligature force didn’t affect his sentencing.
“There’s been a lot of discussion about why and what occurred,” Turk said. But Turk said that what happened after the killing “speaks volumes,” saying that Ewing’s journal entries show a “great deal of hatred, anger and rage.”
“It created a nightmare that will never go away. There has to be justice.”
Last year, The American Bazaar had reported that Shrestha’s mother was not aware of her daughter’s supposedly close friendship with Ewing.
The Times also reported that Ewing was charged in 2012 with keeping a collection of animals and insects in a section of the university’s underground steam tunnel network. She had the charges – storing wildlife that is unlawful to sell and trespassing after being forbidden – dismissed after completing 50 hours of community service, according to court records.
The animals included two nonpoisonous, constrictor-like snakes, a black widow spider, a tarantula, two unidentified lizards, a frog, a rabbit, three mice and a cage of crickets.