PROTECT THE CHILDREN OR THE PEDOPHILES
Megan Kanka was an innocent little girl, someone's daughter, sister, and best friend. The defendant, Jesse Timmendequas, changed all of that. He changed it brutally, savagely, and permanently. In a few moments of unspeakable horror, the defendant destroyed all of Megan's dreams, all of that joy, all that hope, all that promise. In those few moments, he destroyed Megan Kanka's life. She would never live to see her wedding day, never have children, and never embrace her family again. Jesse Timmendequas took Megan's life on July 24, 1994. Her funeral was held on Wednesday, August 3, 1994.
Jesse Timmendequas was a twice convicted sex offender. He moved in across the street from Megan's home without the family's knowledge of his history as a pedophile. Joseph Cifelli was another convicted sex offender who had spent nine years at the Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center. He had been convicted after admitting to repeated sexual abuse of a relative that had begun when the child was nine. A third man, Brian R. Jenin had been convicted twice of crimes involving young boys. Jenin, along with Timmendequas, was under investigation in connection with the unsolved murders of two boys in San Diego. All three were Megan's neighbors.
Jesse Timmendequas' convictions stemmed from a 1981 attack on a 5 year old girl, for which he served 9 months. That same year he was convicted for an attempted rape of a 7 year old girl, for which he was sentenced to ten years. After serving only six years, he was free to lure 7 year old Megan into his home where he brutally raped and strangling her with a belt as she bit and fought for life. He knocked her to the floor, hitting her several times in the head. He wrapped her head in plastic shopping bags to prevent her blood from staining the rugs. He then took a toy box and stuffed her inside. Megan's body was found in a weeded area of a nearby park near a portable toilet.