The Kenneka Jenkins Case: Understanding the Victim and the Theories

 Yarely Alvarez

Professor Palenque

English 101

3 June 2025

Victim Profile: Who Was Kenneka Jenkins?

Kenneka Jenkins was a 19-year-old African American woman from Chicago's West Side who had her whole life ahead of her when tragedy struck in September 2017 (CBS News, 2023). She was described as someone with a bright smile and vibrant personality who was excited about starting a new chapter in her life. According to reports, she had just gotten a new job at a local nursing home and was celebrating this achievement the night she died (Essence, 2020).

What makes Kenneka's story so heartbreaking is that she was just a regular teenager doing what many young people do – going out with friends to have fun. She borrowed her mother's car that Friday night and told her family she was hanging out with friends, though she didn't mention the hotel party specifically (Essence, 2020). This detail shows how quickly a normal night out can turn dangerous when you don't know all the details about where you're going or who will be there.

The location where Kenneka died also tells us a lot about the circumstances. The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Rosemont, Illinois, was supposed to be a safe, public place. However, the party was being held in a hotel room paid for with a fraudulent credit card linked to a Chicago-area gang (CBS News, 2017). This means that from the very beginning, the party had criminal connections that Kenneka probably didn't know about. The hotel's kitchen area, where she was found, was supposed to be secured and off-limits to guests, but somehow she ended up there alone (WUSF, 2023).

Theories and Public Discourse: What Really Happened?

The official theory from police and medical examiners is that Kenneka's death was a tragic accident. They believe she became intoxicated at the party, wandered through the hotel, somehow entered the kitchen area, and got trapped in the freezer where she died from hypothermia (CBS News, 2023). Her blood alcohol level was 0.112, which is legally drunk, and she also had topiramate, an epilepsy medication, in her system that made the cold more dangerous (WUSF, 2023).

However, many people, including myself, believe this was actually murder. The biggest problem with the accident theory is that the freezer had a mechanism to open the door from the inside (WUSF, 2023). If Kenneka just wandered in there by accident, why couldn't she get out? Also, she was never prescribed the epilepsy medication found in her system, which means someone had to give it to her (CBS News, 2023).

Social media exploded with theories about what really happened. An anonymous caller even told police that one of Kenneka's associates was involved in a "blood gang" and could have accepted $200 for her death (CBS News, 2017). While police investigated this tip, they never found proof to support it.

The case became huge on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, with millions of people sharing theories and demanding justice. Some people analyzed every frame of the hotel security footage looking for clues. Others pointed out suspicious details like how the motion-activated camera in the kitchen hadn't worked for weeks until her body was discovered (CBS News, 2017).

What's most telling is that in 2023, Kenneka's family received a $10 million settlement from the hotel after a court found them negligent in several ways (CBS News, 2023). This suggests that even if it wasn't murder, serious mistakes were made that contributed to her death.

The public discourse around this case shows how social media can keep pressure on officials and demand accountability, even when cases are officially closed.



Works Cited

CBS News. "Kenneka Jenkins case: New details emerge from police reports." CBS News, 16 Oct. 2017, www.cbsnews.com/news/kenneka-jenkins-case-new-details-emerge-from-police-reports/.

CBS News. "Kenneka Jenkins' family to get $6.4 million in settlement over her death in Chicago area hotel freezer." CBS News, 12 Dec. 2023, www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/kenneka-jenkins-freezer-death-settlement/.

Essence. "A Timeline Of Kenneka Jenkins' Last Moments And Investigation." Essence, 26 Oct. 2020, www.essence.com/news/timeline-kenneka-jenkins-timeline/.

WUSF. "She died in a hotel's walk-in freezer. Her family will receive more than $6 million." WUSF, 13 Dec. 2023, www.wusf.org/2023-12-13/she-died-in-a-hotels-walk-in-freezer-her-family-will-receive-more-than-6-million.

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