The Sandy Jeffers murder was a May 2003 stalking, kidnapping, rape, and killing of a 25-year-old University of Tennessee student by Aaron Lee Skeen, a 20-year-old Maryville man with no prior criminal record who had been breaking into her apartment for weeks. Skeen pleaded guilty in December 2003 and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 124 years.
Who Sandy Jeffers Was
Jeffers grew up in Scott County, Tennessee, and was the valedictorian of Scott High School’s 1996 class. She earned a sociology degree with top honors from East Tennessee State University in 2000 and then moved to Maryville to attend the University of Tennessee, where she was described as a straight-A student.1The Daily Beacon. Skeen Sentenced to Life in Prison By the spring of 2003 she was finishing a second bachelor’s degree, in anthropology, and had been accepted into UT’s graduate program in archaeology.2The Daily Beacon. Skeen May Face Death Penalty Her graduation ceremony was scheduled for May 10, 2003. That was the day her body was found.
How Aaron Lee Skeen Targeted Her
Skeen began breaking into Jeffers’ apartment in April 2003 through a faulty window. He entered at least three times before the murder, stealing checks, a DVD, compact discs, and undergarments. Security cameras at a Walmart in Alcoa caught him twice using her stolen checks before the killing, and once the day after.1The Daily Beacon. Skeen Sentenced to Life in Prison Prosecutors said there was no prior personal relationship between the two; Skeen was a stranger who had been monitoring her home and her routine.
The Night of May 6, 2003
Skeen broke into Jeffers’ apartment that night, raped her, and forced her into his vehicle.3The Daily Beacon. Skeen to Face Grand Jury He drove her to the Look Rock observation area off the Foothills Parkway in the Great Smoky Mountains and pushed her over an embankment roughly 60 feet to the base of the cliff below. In his later confession, he told investigators he did it to destroy evidence that he had raped her.1The Daily Beacon. Skeen Sentenced to Life in Prison The medical examiner determined the cause of death was multiple blunt trauma.
Her body was found at the base of the cliff on May 10, 2003, the same day she had been scheduled to walk at graduation. The University of Tennessee awarded her anthropology degree posthumously that day.2The Daily Beacon. Skeen May Face Death Penalty
The Investigation and Confession
Neighbors reported seeing a vehicle leaving Jeffers’ apartment on the night of May 6, and the description matched Skeen’s car. Investigators also had the Walmart footage of him passing her checks. Jeffers herself had reported the first bounced check to police on May 6, the same day she was kidnapped.4Our Midland. Body of Abducted U of Tenn Student Found
Skeen was arrested on May 9, 2003. He waived his Miranda rights and gave a detailed videotaped confession, physically demonstrated the crime for a detective, and led authorities to Jeffers’ body in the Great Smoky Mountains. After the murder he had tried to alter his car’s appearance once media described it and had taken other steps to destroy evidence.5CaseMine. Skeen v. State, E2005-01407-CCA-R3-PC
The Guilty Plea and Sentence
A Blount County grand jury indicted Skeen on August 4, 2003, on 25 counts, including first-degree murder, especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape, aggravated burglary, and forgery.2The Daily Beacon. Skeen May Face Death Penalty
On December 1, 2003, Skeen entered a negotiated guilty plea in Blount County Circuit Court before Judge Kelly Thomas. He pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder, one count of especially aggravated kidnapping, three counts of aggravated rape, four counts of aggravated burglary, and three counts of forgery. The plea was entered before the state’s deadline to formally seek the death penalty, and Skeen’s counsel later said the agreement was pursued in part to eliminate that risk.5CaseMine. Skeen v. State, E2005-01407-CCA-R3-PC
Judge Thomas imposed consecutive terms totaling life without the possibility of parole plus 124 years. Skeen’s public defender, Mack Garner, called his client an “average student” and a “good worker” with no criminal record.1The Daily Beacon. Skeen Sentenced to Life in Prison Jeffers’ family attended the sentencing and concurred with the agreement.
The Post-Conviction Appeal
Skeen later filed for post-conviction relief, arguing his trial attorneys had been ineffective on two grounds: they failed to investigate whether the antidepressant Lexapro had left him with diminished mental capacity, and they failed to move to suppress his confession.5CaseMine. Skeen v. State, E2005-01407-CCA-R3-PC Trial counsel testified he had researched the drug and consulted a medical practitioner, concluded a mental health defense would not succeed, and worried that requesting a psychiatric evaluation would trigger a death penalty notice. Investigators testified Skeen had been Mirandized, had waived his rights, and had never asked for a lawyer.
The trial court denied the petition. On August 14, 2006, the Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee affirmed in Skeen v. State, No. E2005-01407-CCA-R3-PC, describing his confession as “rational,” “detailed,” and “goal-directed,” and finding that his efforts to alter his car and destroy evidence showed he was “well connected to reality” at the time of the crimes.5CaseMine. Skeen v. State, E2005-01407-CCA-R3-PC
The Case on Television
The case was the subject of the premiere episode of Your Worst Nightmare on Investigation Discovery, which aired on October 22, 2014. The episode featured Jeffers’ sister Angelia Jeffers, members of the Maryville Police Department and the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, and Knoxville News Sentinel reporter Jamie Satterfield.6Knoxville News Sentinel. TV Show Looks Back at 2003 Murder Case At the time of that report, Skeen was incarcerated at the Northeast Correctional Complex in Mountain City, Tennessee.