Bio

Jesse Joe Patrick was born on February 23, 1958. He grew up in Los Angeles, California. At a young age, Patrick was placed in a foster home due to family issues. He experienced physical abuse during his time in foster care.

As a teenager, Patrick was involved in trouble with the law. He was charged with aggravated assault in 1985. He received a sentence of four years probation but was later violated for not following the terms.

In 1986, his probation was revoked, and he was sentenced to imprisonment for four years. He served only four months before being released. After his release, he faced more legal issues, including additional convictions for driving while intoxicated.

By the late 1980s, Patrick had settled in Dallas, Texas. He lived with a teenage girlfriend. The couple was struggling financially, and at times, they relied on the kindness of neighbors. One of those neighbors was 80-year-old Nina Rutherford Redd. She had previously helped Patrick and his girlfriend by giving them food and allowing them to use her phone.

Murder Story

On July 8, 1989, Jesse Joe Patrick broke into the home of 80-year-old Nina Rutherford Redd in Pleasant Grove, Texas. He entered through a bathroom window. Inside, he assaulted Redd and inflicted fatal injuries by slashing her throat with a knife. After the attack, he ransacked her home and left the scene.

Later that morning, Patrick called the police to report that his own home had been burglarized. However, when officers arrived at his house, they found no one home. They did notice a large rock covered in blood outside. The next day, police searched Patrick's home and discovered a sock soaked with dried blood, bloody toilet tissues, and a pair of denim jeans with suspicious stains. DNA testing confirmed that the blood matched Redd's.

Police found a palm print belonging to Patrick on the bathroom window sill where he had entered. A knife identified as belonging to Patrick's girlfriend was found at the crime scene. Patrick was arrested on July 22, 1989, at his sister's house in Mississippi, where he was hiding under a bed.

After his arrest, Patrick confessed to the murder but later recanted his confession. He was charged with capital murder for the death of Nina Redd. In April 1990, he was convicted and sentenced to death. His case went through various appeals, but none resulted in a change to his conviction or sentence.

In the years leading up to his execution, Patrick sought to have DNA testing done on additional evidence, claiming it might prove his innocence. However, courts ruled against him, stating there was no reasonable probability the test would lead to an acquittal.

On September 17, 2002, Jesse Joe Patrick was executed by lethal injection in Texas. He made no final statement, and a request for a last meal was also not made.