The man accused of killing a girl from Pasco County more than 30 years ago was found guilty Thursday.
Jeffrey Norman Crum, 64, was arrested in 2023 after DNA evidence linked him to the 1993 disappearance of Jennifer Odom, 12.
After a four-day trial, a Hernando County jury took five hours to declare Crum guilty of first-degree murder, kidnapping, and sexual battery.
"For more than 30 years, Jennifer's family, investigators and the communities of Pasco and Hernando Counties waited for answers," state attorney Bill Gladson said in a news release. "Now, this long running cold case has reached its end."
The case remained open for more than 30 years while investigators pursued hundreds of leads, according to a news release.
They eventually found similarities between Odom's case and one in 1992 that involved an an attack of a teenage girl in Pasco County. Odom was already serving two life terms in that case.
Crum was linked to the Odom case in 2015 through DNA testing from the earlier rape.
"Today's verdict is the result of decades of determination, perseverance and an unwavering commitment to Jennifer Odom and her family," Gladson said in the release. "We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the investigators, forensic professionals, prosecutors and countless individuals who refused to allow this case to be forgotten.
"My office also recognizes Jennifer's family, who endured unimaginable loss while continuing to wait for justice. Jennifer was just 12 years old when she was taken from her family. For over 30 years, her loved ones lived without knowing who was responsible for her death. Today, a jury has held Jeffrey Crum accountable for this
heinous crime."
On Feb. 19, 1993, the day she disappeared, Jennifer got off her school bus at around 3 p.m. in Pasco County. She waved to her friends and began walking the roughly 200-yard (183-meter) distance to her home, but she never made it.
Children who were on the bus told investigators they saw a faded blue pickup truck slowly following Jennifer as she walked home. Six days after she disappeared, her body was found in an orange grove in Hernando County after a massive search that the media closely followed.
Crum has a violent crime history, including a 1981 robbery and a 1985 sexual battery case in Hillsborough County, according to court records.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
