Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘He Murdered My Mother’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Evil Lives Here: The Killer Speaks,’ the focus is on the gruesome murder of Mary Tench in the winter of 2013. The sudden demise of the mother of two shocked the entire community, including her family and friends. The insurmountable evidence against the killer made the investigation swift and led the detectives straight to the killer. The documentary features an insightful interview with Mary’s daughter, Jennifer Tench Swain, who describes her relationship with her mother and how her passing affected her.
Mary Tench Was Found Dead Inside Her SUV
The beloved daughter of Lt. Colonel Francis J. Jr. and Mary Lou (Murray) Witt, Mary Margaret Witt was born on April 19, 1958, in Youngstown, Ohio. She was raised in a caring household by her parents, who showered Mary and her five siblings — sisters Carolyn Massie, Patricia Szucs, and Donna Mueller as well as brothers Jack and Bill Witt — with immense affection and attention. Even after the Witt kids were all grown up, they shared a tight-knit bond with their parents and each other. Mary was a brilliant and compassionate individual who would always extend a helping hand to those in need. It was likely her warm and kindhearted personality that attracted the attention of James Kimbal Tench.
As they spent more time together, Mary and James fell in love and eventually married. Soon, the couple started their own family and welcomed two kids — son, James Jr. AKA Jimmy, and daughter, Jennifer — into the beautiful home they had built together with love and understanding. Over the years, the family of four settled into a comfortable life in Brunswick, Ohio. Both Mary and James worked hard to give their kids a great future. However, fate lent a cruel hand when the latter was diagnosed with Esophageal cancer in August 2011. Though it turned Mary’s life upside down, it didn’t crush her spirit, and she stood by her husband through each step as he battled the condition. Unfortunately, James passed away in April 2012, around eight months following his diagnosis.
Devastated by the loss of the love of her life, Mary carried on by cherishing his memories and keeping his spirit alive in her heart, as that’s what James would’ve wanted for her. A reputed member of the community, she was a celebrated educator who worked as a Nurse’s assistant at a retirement facility and nursing home in Lakewood named Ennis Court. In her downtime, Mary enjoyed being around her kids, grandkids, siblings, and friends, all of whom she doted upon. However, things took a sinister turn on November 11, 2013, when she was tragically taken from her loved ones forever. On the fateful day, Mary finished her work shift from 3 pm to 11 pm and left the facility as usual, but didn’t reach home. When her son, Jimmy, couldn’t contact his mother or learn about her whereabouts for over an hour, he dialed 911 and informed them of the same.
Jimmy also contacted the Ohio State Highway Patrol and inquired about any potential accidents between her workplace and their home on Camden Lane in Brunswick. He drove to the Brunswick police station and filed a missing person’s report the following morning. A few hours later, around noon, the police received a call from the workers of a business in the industrial park on Carquest Drive in Brunswick regarding a silver SUV that was parked in an open field beside the park. When the police arrived, they discovered Mary dead inside the rear compartment of her car. Upon further investigation of the crime scene, the authorities found blood splatter as well as a trail of footprints on the ground. As per the autopsy report, the 55-year-old was struck at least 18 times on the head and neck, with the cause of death determined to be severe blunt force trauma.
Authorities Found Overwhelming Evidence Against the Killer
Since Jimmy Tench was the one who reported his mother, Mary Tench, missing, the authorities interviewed him at the house they shared. Although he denied any involvement in the murder, the detectives came across many pieces of physical evidence against him. Jimmy had claimed that he tried calling his missing mother, but upon checking his phone records, they couldn’t corroborate his claim. The medical examiner at the crime scene found blood spatter stains belonging to Mary on her son’s boots. The footprints of the same pair of boots were found near her remains.
The detectives found more traces of blood inside and outside the Tench property. Moreover, Jimmy was in possession of the same type of duct tape that was discovered on her remains. On top of that, he was already a suspect in an unrelated robbery of the Strongsville restaurant at the time. Upon interviewing other loved ones and acquaintances of Mary Tench, the investigators found out that after the demise of the patriarch of the family, Jimmy allegedly began abusing his mother. Around the time of her death, her son was dating Christina Kyker, for whom he purchased expensive gifts using Mary’s credit cards.
According to Christina, when Mary confronted him about the same at a breakfast in October 2013, he became violent towards her and instructed her to stop the discussion. Jimmy’s co-workers also told the detectives that around the time of her death, he had been speaking ill of his mother and wishing that she were dead. With more than 1,000 pieces of evidence pointing to his guilt, the authorities arrested Jimmy Tench for the murder of his mother, Mary Tench. Subsequently, he was indicted on three counts of aggravated murder, one count of felony murder premised on aggravated robbery, and one count of felony murder connected to kidnapping.
James “Jimmy” Tench is Currently on Death Row
Before Jimmy Tench stood trial for Mary Tench’s murder, he pleaded guilty in 2014 to being involved in the robbery of a Strongsville restaurant and was sentenced to five years in prison. While he was serving his sentence at the Richland Correctional Institution, his murder trial commenced on February 22, 2016. According to the prosecution, the defendant beat his mother to death and ran her over with her SUV, inside which he then stashed her body. Meanwhile, the defense argued that Mary was abducted by two or more people while she was returning home on the fateful night. After hearing both sides of the coin, the jury deliberated for one day and reached its verdict.
Finally, on March 23, 2016, Jimmy Tench was found guilty on three counts of aggravated murder, two counts of murder, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, and tampering with evidence. At the sentencing hearing on April 25, 2016, the defense requested that the judge show leniency and give the convict a life sentence instead of the death penalty. However, at the end, 30-year-old Jimmy Tench was given the death sentence. In the following years, he continued to maintain his innocence and filed a couple of appeals, which were denied by the court due to the overwhelming evidence of guilt against him. As of today, he is being held at Ross Correctional Institution in Chillicothe, Ohio, while awaiting the date of his execution.
Read More: Jenn Swain: What Happened to Jimmy Tench’s Sister?
