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- [00:02]
Vanessa
Hi listeners, it's Vanessa. Before we get into today's episode, I want to tell you about another show I think you'll love. Hidden history with Dr. Harini Bhat. Every Monday, Dr. Bhat goes where history gets mysterious. Vanished civilizations, doomsday prophecies, paranormal phenomena and events that science still can't fully explain. Dr. Bot treats these moments like open case files. Not myths, not superstition, just incomplete explanations waiting for a closer look. Hidden History drops every Monday. Follow now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen, so you never miss a mystery.
- [00:52]
Podcast Advertiser
This is crime house.
- [00:58]
Sarah Turney
You're watching a surveillance video from a Starbucks at the Illinois State University Student Center. The date reads August 24, 2021. At 7:19am a 25 year old man enters in black slacks, a black belt and black dress shoes. His blue long sleeve dress shirt matches his blue surgical mask. His name is Jelani Day. At 7:21am he orders at the register, then sits down while the barista makes his drink. At 7:24, he grabs his order and walks out. This is Jelani's second week of in person graduate classes for speech pathology. So he's dressed up for that and he's meeting a patient later that day. But inexplicably, Jelani doesn't show up for any of it. Instead, what happens over the next two hours is mostly a mystery until he appears on another set of surveillance cameras at 9:11am this footage is in the
- [01:54]
Courtney Nicole
parking lot at a cannabis dispensary three miles away from campus. Jelani gets out of his white 2010 Chrysler 3000 in totally different clothes now. A black Jimi Hendrix tee, gray shorts, a blue Detroit Lions baseball hat and Nike high tops. He walks inside, goes to the counter and buys a single blunt in cash. Then he gets back in his car and sits for four minutes before driving away. This is the last known sighting of Jelani Day. Eleven days later, he'll be found dead 60 miles away from his last known location with no explanation of why he went there. Every year, over half a million people go missing. And that's just in the United States alone. Most of those stories barely get a headline. Some don't even get a flyer or a tip line. And when cases do get media attention, we usually only get the broad strokes.
- [02:54]
Sarah Turney
But for those of us who have lived these true crime cases, we know the devil's in the details. This is the final hours. A Crime House original Powered by Pave Studios. I'm Sarah Turney.
- [03:05]
Courtney Nicole
And I'm Courtney Nicole. Every Monday, Sarah and I will be looking at the final hours of someone's disappearance, the small, seemingly mundane moments, to see if there was anything hiding in plain sight.
- [03:16]
Sarah Turney
Looking back at those last conversations, connections and choices is critical and it could be the key to unlocking it all. Each episode I'll offer insight on what those close to the victim might have been going through, and Courtney will use her expertise to give more context into the crime scene, the red flags, and the investigation itself. And we want to thank you for being a part of the Crime House community. Please rate, review and follow the show and for ad free access to every episode. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple
- [03:44]
Courtney Nicole
Podcasts this time we're discussing the disappearance of 25 year old Jelani Day. In August 2021, he was starting his first in person semester at Illinois State University for his graduate degree in Speech pathology. He was excited to see his first patient on the 24th. That day he dressed nicely, worked on his patient's chart, and grabbed Starbucks at the student center. But before his appointment, he left campus, stopped at a dispensary and was never seen alive again.
- [04:18]
Vanessa
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- [05:25]
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- [06:20]
Courtney Nicole
the case of Jelani Day is one you just cannot get out of your head, mainly because it feels like so much more could have been done. Jelani was the kind of young man who thought about everybody else. First. He planned to be a speech pathologist, commonly known as a speech therapist so he could give voices to those who struggled to speak. Afterwards, he wanted to become a doctor so his mom wouldn't have to work. He was planning to donate stem cells to a sick father. But when he went missing, the police hesitated to take his case seriously and the FBI wouldn't take the case at all. But before we discuss what didn't happen for Jelani Day, let's talk about all the things that did happen in his life.
- [06:58]
Sarah Turney
It's 2021. 25 year old Jelani was born and raised in Danville, Illinois, the fourth of five siblings. His siblings meant everything to him. Growing up, all the day children took pride in their grades. They had a friendly competition to see who could get their GPA the highest. But really, all Jelani wants out of life is to help the people he cares about, especially those who struggle to speak. Growing up, he had a friend named Paul who used to get teased for his speech impediment and that had a big effect on Jelani. Jelani earned a scholarship for academics and track, so he went on to get a bachelor's degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders from Alabama A and M A Historically Black College where he was an A student. While in undergrad, Jelani was a member of the prestigious black fraternity Omega Sci Phi along with a civic leadership and mentoring organization called 100 Black Men of Greater Huntsville and its campus based program Collegiate 100. He graduated at the top of his class and was given the honor of saying the prayer at his commencement ceremony. Now he's enrolled in graduate school at Illinois State University, working towards his master's degree in Speech pathology. His older Brothers look up to him. They're proud of his intelligence, athleticism and drive and his desire to make a real difference in the world. What Jelani really wants, though, is to get married and have about six kids. And he wants to be successful enough to not just take care of them, but to provide for his parents too.
- [08:27]
Courtney Nicole
In the summer of 2021, 25 year old Jelani starts his first year of grad school in speech pathology. Classes are still remote because of COVID so he attends via Zoom. He gets good grades, but he needs frequent reminders to turn in his assignments. Sometimes he has to complete extra credit to make up for the work he missed. Really, he just seems distracted, which we
- [08:48]
Sarah Turney
can't blame him for because Jelani's dad, Ceveh, is battling leukemia and he needs a stem cell transplant. Jelani's the closest match to his father and he's ready to donate. It's a scary time, but Jelani knows how important this is. But so is school. It's a lot to balance for a
- [09:06]
Courtney Nicole
25 year old, especially because life's going to change a lot soon. The world is switching back on. After Covid, in person classes are resuming in the fall, which the school only just announced. So on top of everything, Jelani's scrambling to find an apartment in the city of Bloomington, near campus. He's also got some new job opportunities in the works. He just spoke to his cousin, Edward Butler, who is the president of Danville's NAACP chapter, the national association for the Advancement of Colored People. Edward wants to make Jelani his youth director and chairperson. Jelani is super excited about this idea.
- [09:43]
Sarah Turney
He's also excited about being back in the classroom again. On August 16, 2021, Jelani attends his first day of in person sessions at isu. At least one of his teachers senses that Jelani might be a bit lonely, though. They think it's because Jelani's the only male and the only black person in his speech pathology program, which is a
- [10:03]
Courtney Nicole
bit of a change from what he's used to. Jelani grew up in Danville, a town with a 33% black population. The national average is 14%. And Bloomington Normal, where his campus is, is around 10%.
- [10:19]
Sarah Turney
This is a lot of change for one person. This is a lot of stress and a lot of change.
- [10:23]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, all at once too. And I just can't imagine what it's like for him to go kind of in a place where he's like more equally represented to now going to a place where he's really underrepresented.
- [10:33]
Sarah Turney
You know, both of us can acknowledge that it's not a struggle that we know, but I think it's a struggle that's important to discuss.
- [10:39]
Courtney Nicole
And like you said, I'll never fully understand what that felt like for him. Walking into spaces where he was suddenly the only one who looked like him as a white person. That's just not something that I've really ever had to carry. But I wanted to point this out because it's not something that you would typically think of when going off to college. But in his case and so many others just like him, it is honestly a really big deal. And it's not always an easy transition.
- [11:02]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I totally agree. And like I was saying, there's so much transition right now he's going back to in person classes, you know, right in the middle of COVID basically. It's just, it's a lot, I think, for anybody to deal with. And on top of everything, right, his dad's sick and he's the one that has to give this stem cells to, you know, hopefully make him better. It's just stress on top of stress on top of stress. Well, let's hop to Monday, August 23, 2021. Two weeks into classes at 11am that day, Jelani meets with one of his instructors for a difficult conversation. They've noticed he's struggling with his coursework and think he could be doing better. He seems frustrated and upset that he's not performing as well as he'd like. Afterwards, he calls his mom, Carmen Bolden Day. He mentions how tomorrow, Tuesday, he has a clinical meeting with a patient to fulfill his academic requirements. He'll be treating clients at the ISU Speech and Hearing Clinic, diagnosing and giving therapy under supervision. He seems really passionate about it, and he says the same thing as usual before ending the conversation. Okay, Mama, I just wanted to hear your voice.
- [12:09]
Courtney Nicole
Jelani has a class at one point, but he shows up almost half an hour late, which is really out of character for him. He rushes in, sits down and opens up his laptop to take notes. He seems frantic to other students, but he's quiet throughout class, which is also strange for Jelani. He usually participates. Class ends at 2:15pm he often goes with his classmates to do homework afterward at Fairchild hall, where their department is located. But not today. At 6:23pm Jelani talks to Carmen for the second time that day. He finishes the conversation with the same okay, Mama, I'll talk to you later. I just wanted to hear your voice. She says, okay, bae, I'll talk to you in the morning. But they'll never get that chance. Between 6:57 and 9:23pm that night, Jelani talks and texts with Kara Boaster, the director of Clinical Education education at isu. They talk about how he just completed a two step tuberculosis test, a requirement for him to see his patient the next day. At 3pm during the conversation, Jelani sends Kara his results, but she notices they're from the one step test. They make a plan for him to go to the student health center the next morning to start the second step. If he does that and shows her before his clinical, he can see his patient. If he doesn't, he'll be out of compliance and won't be able to do it after that. At 9:41pm that night, Jelani has a short phone conversation with his older brother. This is the last call on Jelani's cell.
- [13:41]
Sarah Turney
The following day, on Tuesday, August 24, Jelani gets an early start. He puts on a blue dress shirt, black slacks, a black belt and black dress shoes. He wants to look professional for his first clinical. He drives to campus and walks to Fairchild Hall. Around 6:50am he swipes his ID to access the computer lab. Anticipating the appointment, he spends nine minutes making changes to his client's chart. Afterwards, he exits the building and sits on a bench and uses his phone. Then he walks back across campus. At 7:19am, Jelani arrives at the Starbucks inside ISU's Bone Student Center. He orders at 7:21, sits down for two minutes, and at 7:23, he's out of there, coffee in hand. But he never goes for that TB test like he's supposed to. And he doesn't go to his classes later that afternoon either. Instead, he drives back to his apartment and changes out of his clothes.
- [14:37]
Courtney Nicole
At 9:12am, Jelani arrives at the beyond hello Cannabis dispensary in Bloomington, 10 minutes away from campus. Marijuana is legal in Illinois and it's not unusual for Jelani to smoke once in a while. He goes into the store now wearing a black Jimi Hendrix tee, gray shorts, black Nike high tops and a blue Detroit Lions hat. Jelani buys one joint and leaves. This change of clothing kind of really throws me for a loop because he seems really excited for this clinical. I'm like really looking forward to it. And he even woke up that day and dressed like in his best clothes. So it kind of confuses me why he then goes back and then changes into something a little bit more like relaxed.
- [15:19]
Sarah Turney
You know, what I was thinking was maybe he didn't want his Nice clothes to smell like weed.
- [15:23]
Courtney Nicole
Oh, that makes actually perfect sense.
- [15:25]
Sarah Turney
You know what I mean? Like, he wants to be professional. He wants to show up, but maybe he wants this, you know, blunt for after a hard day's work.
- [15:32]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah. And, you know, it's perfectly legal. It's perfectly legal there. And if he's known to do it, like, there's really no harm. So, yeah, that. That actually makes perfect sense.
- [15:40]
Sarah Turney
Maybe he did, like, a workout at. He's trying to, like, get the jitters out. I don't know. You know, part of me reads this as, like, maybe he needed a mental health day. Maybe it was all too much and he just needed to take a step back and. And kind of, like, recalibrate. Um, but also, again, just with a change of clothes, I'm thinking he didn't want that smell to linger, honestly.
- [16:00]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, I probably wouldn't either. Especially if you're, like, really wanting to be, like, professional and, like, really make a good impression. I can totally see that happening. However, you know, I do think at this point, though, that he was planning on going back to campus. And like I said, he just seems really excited about this. He's not just doing it for himself, but he's also doing it to, like, take care of his mom and his future family. And, like, this is a very necessary next step to proceed in the program. So to me, it does seem like he wants to go back to the campus and complete this clinical.
- [16:29]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. I mean, obviously neither of us, like, knew Jelani, right? But it does seem like he was obviously a very overachiever. He worked really hard to get into this position. So I don't see really anybody just throwing it away like this. It doesn't make any sense to me, especially something as easy as showing up, you know, to get the second part of a TB test and then going to a clinical. I feel like all the studying, all the preparation, this is what it leads up to, is. Is more of these. I don't want to say easier, but almost like the fruits of your labor. He's finally getting to do his first clinical, and that's exciting. I think he was going to celebrate at the end of the day with his blunt. I mean, that's just my theory.
- [17:07]
Courtney Nicole
That day, Tuesday, August 24th. Jelani doesn't check in with the director of Clinical education, Kara. He doesn't complete his TB test. He doesn't show up to see his patient at 3pm he doesn't call or text to let anyone know he's going to be absent, and his phone is going straight to voicemail after being spotted at that dispensary. Jelani just disappears, but not without a trace.
- [17:38]
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- [18:36]
Vanessa
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Courtney Nicole
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- [18:51]
Vanessa
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- [18:59]
Courtney Nicole
and get your suspense somewhere else, like from a riveting podcast. It's Wednesday, August 25, 2021, the day after Jelani missed his first clinical. Today at noon, Jelani misses a clinic meeting and he doesn't show up for his 1pm class. Kara and a couple of other worried faculty members go to the department chair, Gene Sawyer. They discuss Jelani's tardiness, missing classes and clinicals, and now he's not responding to calls and texts. Gene submits a report to the Redbird Care Team, a unit under Student affairs that helps students who are struggling or showing concerning behavior. The manager assigned to Jelani's case checks in with ISU's dining services and recreation center. He hasn't been active with either. The manager leaves Jelani a voice message. By 5pm Jelani's professors are seriously worried. Gene submits another care report asking for an update. Nobody at ISU files a missing persons report, but the Illinois State University Police Department asks the Bloomington Police for help.
- [20:03]
Sarah Turney
That night, they visit the dayes family about 80 miles away in Danville, looking for Jelani. His brother. Middle school teacher DeAndre answers the door. He calls their mother and sister to see if either has heard from Jelani. They haven't. Since nobody can reach him, DeAndre drives to Bloomington while Carmen makes a ton of calls. At this point, Carmen knows something isn't right. She tries to convince the police to go all in, but they tell her that adults who are missing for a short period of time only trigger a full search if they're in danger of hurting themselves or others. And they don't think Jelani's case has risen to that level.
- [20:40]
Courtney Nicole
At 8:57pm the Bloomington Police check Jelani's apartment, but he isn't there. Neither is his car. The apartment manager lets them into Jelani's unit. Everything appears to be in place. School books, clothes, luggage, toiletries and kitchenware. But no Jelani. So wherever he is, it doesn't seem like he was planning to be gone long. Knowing that, deandre meets officers at his brother's apartment and officially reports him missing. The patrol officer checks with hospitals and towing companies, but doesn't find any information on Jelani or his car. At 11pm on Wednesday, August 25, 2021, Jelani enters the system as a missing person. I feel like we have been saying that way too much lately. And the fact that he wasn't reminded, reported, or at least in the system as a missing person until 38 hours after he was actually missing, that is insane to me.
- [21:35]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, it's like not surprising anymore, but always disappointing. I. And I don't know what else to say on this subject anymore. Like, we talk about it so often that I wish police would just stop doing what they do. Like just put him in as a missing person. Like, it. It's not that hard.
- [21:51]
Courtney Nicole
I know. Like, what could it really hurt? I mean, at this point, you have all of his family coming to you saying this is not normal. And on top of that, you have all of his teachers at the school. This is not normal. I feel like that is plenty of people to be like, okay, maybe this holds some weight. Maybe I should just look into it. And the fact that they didn't and 38 hours went by, that's just so heartbreaking and incredibly frustrating.
- [22:13]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, it feels like the school is doing more for Jelani at this point. And I'll keep saying it, if police can come out for somebody stealing something from the Dollar store, why can't they make a missing person's Report.
- [22:28]
Courtney Nicole
The morning after Jelani's reported missing, Thursday, August 26, his parents head to the Bloomington area. At 9:32am his dad, Sevy, waves down ISU officer David Erickson in the parking lot outside the student center. Sevy tells David that there was a transaction on Jelani's credit card at the student center Starbucks on Tuesday, August 24th. David reviews the security footage, spots Jelani, and then uploads a copy to their server to include in his case file. At 9:52am Sgt. Paul Jones with Bloomington PD talks to Carmen on the phone. He goes to Jelani's apartment to meet with his dad and older brother. At 10:32am they let him inside to look around. And at 11:00am he heads over to the ISU Student Center Starbucks to talk to the employees. Then at 1208pm he calls Kara Boaster. Later, he reaches back out to the family, offering to post about Jelani on the Bloomington Police Department Facebook page. And shortly after that, there's a massive break in the case. You want to tell them, Sarah?
- [23:30]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. Jelani's car is found. It's about 60 miles north of Bloomington in the town of Peru. It's concealed in a small wooded area,
- [23:39]
Courtney Nicole
which Sarah and I found super odd for a few reasons. One, Jelani loves this car. It's a white 2010 Chrysler 3000 that his grandfather gave him. And two, the area where it's found is in the middle of a bigger residential neighborhood where he doesn't know anyone, he doesn't have any connection to the city or seemingly any reason to be there. Carmen also points out that her son would never just go to the woods to hang out. And three, Peru is what's known as a sundown town.
- [24:10]
Sarah Turney
Basically, between the late 1800s through most of the 20th century, black people were required to leave these towns by sunset. While some sundown towns had formal laws, others, like Peru, had unwritten rules. If members of the black community didn't leave before dark, they were harassed, intimidated, and in some cases, assaulted. Signs around town used racist words and commanded black people not to let the sun set on them. According to one longtime resident, the town had a whistle that was blown around sunset to notify the black community that they needed to get out of town. And while those laws no longer exist, many towns are still known for being unfriendly to black people.
- [24:51]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, in 1970, after the laws went out of fashion, the black population was only 5 people. Even today, only 0.06 of Peru's population is black. So now you have people wondering Did Jelani pass through and was he targeted? If so, he wouldn't have been the first person suspected of being lynched in the area. On September 18, 2018, three years before Jelani's death, a black man was found hanged from a tree in nearby woods. The police ruled it a suicide. Despite his daughter's protests, she begged them to look into it.
- [25:26]
Sarah Turney
I can't even imagine how his daughter must have felt, but I bet Carmen can. She feels like she's in the dark about a lot of things as this investigation unravels. For example, when Jelani's car is found, the story breaks before police even call to tell her. Carmen finds out through an article Kara sent her. Afterwards, Carmen drives to Peru as fast as she can to meet with officers searching her son's car.
- [25:51]
Courtney Nicole
Inside the abandoned car, police find some of Jelani's clothing he was wearing at the dispensary two days earlier. There's also a partially smoked blunt and Jelani's journal. Police never share what's written inside, just that There are only two entries in 2021 and no suicide note. They also find a Tennessee license plate having no clear connection to Jelani in the trunk. The car's actual license plate has been removed. Even the screws are missing, but there's no blood and it doesn't look like anything was disturbed. So police say there are no signs of foul play. After this, the Peru police joined Bloomington and Illinois State University police in the search. They sweep the area with dogs, drones, and by Foot. At 4:30pm a Bloomington detective tells Carmen that if he doesn't hear anything by 5pm that day, he'll check in with her the following Monday. I feel like, I always think that, you know, when certain clues turn up, kind of an area where the person, the victim is not known to frequent, that's always kind of like a red flag and something that always catches my attention and should be looked into. But specifically in this case, the car was found in Peru. And like you said, given the history, that is incredibly concerning. And it also kind of makes me more frustrated that the police are still not really thinking foul plays involved.
- [27:10]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, 100%. It feels like they think that because the laws have changed that the people have changed. Right. And I'm sure that's the case for some people. I don't want to sit here and say that every resident of Peru is evil or whatever, but we know that it takes generations, multiple generations, to eradicate that type of hate, hate, if it's ever eradicated at all. So I think that it still needs to be a huge concern in this case.
- [27:34]
Courtney Nicole
Definitely. And also kind of speaking on the items that were found in his car, most of the stuff doesn't really spark any concern for me. Like his journal, I mean, if he's known to write and like he's in school, I feel like that's pretty normal to find like his clothes. The half smoked blunt. That doesn't really like raise any red flags to me just because we know that he went to the dispensary that day. And yeah, like at some point he probably smoked that blunt. But the one thing that really does stick out to me is his missing license plate. That's really weird. And then that Tennessee license plate that didn't really have any connection to his car, but was found there. You know what's interesting is a couple years ago when I lived in Seattle, I didn't realize this, but luckily my husband was driving for Uber at the time, which is the only reason why he caught what I'm about to say. But somebody took off my license plate and put on a different license plate. But like I said, he was driving for Uber and when he went to go pick up his first customer, she was holding up the phone. She was, are you, you know, so and so double checking, obviously, like you should do for safety reasons, the license plate and everything. And the license plate didn't match. And so he got out to look and that's when he noticed somebody replaced our license plate. I don't know what they were trying to do, if they were like trying to commit a crime with my license plate, but that I found that so weird.
- [28:47]
Sarah Turney
Court, I might know what they were trying to do through my, you know, possible younger activities that I was around. Right. So very often when people steal a car, they'll swap the license plate from the same type of car. That way if cop runs the plate, it's not reported as stolen. You know what I mean? So if you have like a white Chrysler, let's say you'd swipe it with another white Chrysler license plate so that nothing weird would show up if it gets reported stolen.
- [29:14]
Courtney Nicole
Okay, that makes perfect sense. I don't know why, like, I just, I couldn't understand why somebody would do that. But living in Seattle, like you see a ton of crazy things on a daily basis. But yeah, that checks out and makes sense.
- [29:25]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, yeah. I grew up, you know, I had a wild teenage hood. I never did it, but I saw people around me do it, like just to be fair, you know what I mean? Like it was it was just kind of like around me. But with this being a Tennessee plate found in his car, that doesn't appear to be the motive, at least according to me and my limited criminal knowledge, if you will. That makes no sense to me, that license plate. And I think that that's one of the biggest red flags, because what would Jelani even want with a random license plate? To me, it seems pretty clear that somebody else put it there, but that is just a theory.
- [29:57]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, I agree. I don't think he would put it there. I mean, why would he? The only clue that we have is that his car was found abandoned. So if you don't, you just like get up and, you know, so to speak, just kind of walk away. And it doesn't make sense why he would take his own license plate off and then leave that one behind. Like you said to me, that's a clear indicator that someone else did that and it was not Jelani.
- [30:17]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, like, that's not even how you, like, start a new life. You know what I mean? You don't just like, swap the license plate on your grandpa's Chrysler and then nobody can find you. So none of that, none of that makes sense. At this point, Jelani's family is both scared and frustrated that police won't be searching over the weekend. So they decide to try and find Jelani on their own. On Friday, August 27, Carmen posts on Facebook. She asked people to help canvas the area where Jelani's car was found. They'll start the next day, Saturday, August 28, at 9am at the YMCA in Peru. This is the first of four searches she organizes, and people show up more than expected. Volunteers come from all over. Some make the 100 mile drive from Chicago. A handler even brings out professional tracking dogs to help out. Some people go into the park across the street from the wooded area, and there they actually find something. Clothes and a gun clip.
- [31:17]
Courtney Nicole
Carmen calls the police to process the evidence. An officer collects the volunteer group's findings, but says he doesn't think they have anything to do with Jelani. He thinks the items were left behind by an unhoused person. Then almost a week later, on Thursday, September 2, 2021, a man and his son are out operating their drone in Peru, completely unrelated to the search for Jelani. When they lose contact with it, they drive to where they were flying the drone. A residential area a quarter mile north from where Jelani's car was found. As they look around, they see a black wallet lying open about 15ft away from the street. There's an Illinois driver's license inside and they don't recognize the name, so they search Google. It belongs to Jelani Day. And now that they know he's missing, they call the police. Jelani's money and bank cards are no longer inside, but they also haven't been used since the Student Center Starbucks. Two days after that is Saturday, September 4, 2021. Eleven days since Jelani went missing. A team from the non profit Illinois Search and Rescue Council is out looking for evidence of Jelani. Sure enough, a little over half a mile southwest of where his car was found, someone locates Jelani's ISU lanyard and another ID. But two other police officers find something way more upsetting.
- [32:37]
Sarah Turney
At 9:47am they discover a body floating face down in the Illinois River. It's a little over a mile southwest of where Jelani's car was found. The person is so badly decomposed that their race and sex can't be determined. They also aren't wearing any clothing other than a T shirt, underwear, and a black sweatshirt with the sleeves turned inside out, double knotted around the waist. On September 6, Carmen and other relatives give DNA samples for comparison. A short while later, authorities tell Carmen the state crime lab is out of the chemicals needed to process the DNA, which is why it's taking longer than usual to confirm the person's identity. But ever since this discovery, Carmen feels that the police are paying even less attention to Jelani. Only one Bloomington police detective is now working the case.
- [33:25]
Courtney Nicole
Ultimately, Carmen wants the FBI involved. A 22 year old white woman named Gabby Petito went missing around the same time as Jelani. When the FBI joined her search, her body was found within a week. They have more resources than the police. But the FBI refuses to take on Jelani's case. They don't explicitly state why, but they make excuses like there isn't enough evidence of foul play and local law enforcement is perfectly capable of handling the case. But Carmen disagrees. She wants her young black son to get the same attention as a young white woman.
- [34:02]
Sarah Turney
I think Gabby Petito's case changed true crime forever. I think the amount of attention that her case got shined a light on all of these cases like Jelani's that did not get the same attention. And I really respect her family for not shying away from that.
- [34:17]
Courtney Nicole
I know, I feel like they've really leaned into it and, you know, ever since that whole tragedy, like they've really set up a nice foundation for helping other families in need that have gone through something similar Which I think is a really good thing, like you pointed out. It's just unfortunate that it came to that. And when Gabby went missing and people were actively searching for her, they found several other bodies in the process, which is kind of insane.
- [34:40]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. I mean, all the attention on Gabby did lead to finding many other people. And again, I think it did shine a light on the stats that we kind of already knew that people like Gabby, you know, affluent white women tend to get more attention than people like Jelani, who also, you know, is. Is a rather affluent black man. So I think that all of this really just helped raise more awareness for it. But when you're Carmen Day and you're right in the middle of it. Right. You don't really see that I don't want to speak for her. Right. I just want to say that I understand that frustration. When you see one case get so much attention and you're over here fighting for your loved one, you're always going to think, why? Why not my person?
- [35:21]
Courtney Nicole
So another reason why it's super frustrating that the FBI chose not to take on Jelani's case is because the FBI has access to nationwide databases, advanced forensic labs, and specialized units that most local departments don't have. They can also coordinate across state lines a lot faster, which is huge in a missing person case.
- [35:41]
Sarah Turney
Well, and I bet their lab doesn't run out of the chemicals needed to do these DNA tests. Right. And, like, it's about so much more than just attention, because what comes with media attention and media pressure is that pressure on law enforcement to do something. So it's just. It's so hard when there's so many families out there fighting for that same attention so that that same pressure can be applied to their police department.
- [36:03]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, I. I just can't even imagine how Carmen is feeling at this point. It just has to be so awful seeing this play out in real time, especially to, like, your son. That is just really, really sad.
- [36:13]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. Well, and I know a lot of families take that on themselves, too. Like, what am I not doing enough of to make. Which kind of sounds like, insane. Right. Because in no way am I saying that Carmen didn't do enough. Right. I think we all know that, but that's how it feels as a family member is like somehow I'm lacking. Somehow I'm not doing enough for my person to make them care. And it drives you kind of insane sometimes.
- [36:40]
Courtney Nicole
FBI or not, it seems like a lot of evidence in this case is found by non officials, including two women from Bloomington who go to ISU. They're cousins and on the morning of Tuesday, September 21, 2021, they decide to go on a walk with one of their dogs. They've heard that the police haven't done much to find Jelani since the body was recovered, so they use the opportunity to search for themselves. They drive down to Peru and stop at the fire department to ask where they should start looking. Not that they really expect to find
- [37:10]
Sarah Turney
anything, but they do. Just over a mile east of where the body was discovered, one of them spots a Nike shoe on the riverbank. They take a closer look and find both of the sneakers and a pair of shorts. The shorts contain DNA, but the police will later determine it doesn't belong to Jelani. It's surprising, to say the least.
- [37:31]
Courtney Nicole
It is right? Especially because two days later, on Thursday, September 23, 2021, there's an announcement. The LaSalle County Coroner who covers the area where the unknown body was found, has finally confirmed its identity and it belongs to Jelani Day.
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Sarah Turney
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Courtney Nicole
2020, blood and water. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts. It's Thursday, September 23, 2021. After 19 days, the coroner has finally identified Jelani's body. Bloomington police say Jelani went missing, quote, in unexplained, suspicious circumstances, end quote. But they aren't convinced that means foul play. Meanwhile, the coroner is still waiting on the toxicology and histology report to determine the cause of death. And if you didn't know, histology means the study of tissue. Okay, so some people think that, you know, 19 days is kind of like a really long time to identify a body. And I don't want to assume that Jelani's race played a factor in efficiency here, but on one hand, it's hard not to, considering the lack of urgency up to this point. But on the other hand, in cases where a body is really badly decomposed, especially after being in water for days, identification really is not quick. I know it seems like that thanks to all the movies and TV shows, but it often takes weeks or even months because investigators have to rely on things like dental records or DNA instead of visual id. And in some cases like this, sadly, when decomposition is severe or there's just no clear match, it can honestly even drag on for years. So for it to take 19 days to determine that this body is Jelani's, it doesn't really seem unusual to me. Although I do know that every single day that goes by without an answer, it can be incredibly frustrating. And given how authorities have handled this case so far, it's easy to feel like they just didn't care as much as they should have.
- [41:26]
Sarah Turney
I think that was really well said. I don't think 19 days is the craziest amount of time I've heard, especially if you're counting, like, business days. Right. Which we do have to factor in here. This is like people's jobs. It's not their passion. They're not really Going in on the weekends maybe sometimes. Right. I don't want to speak for all of them, but it doesn't seem like the craziest delay to me. But also, of course, on the family member side, 19 days can also feel like an eternity.
- [41:50]
Courtney Nicole
It really can. I mean, 19 entire days, like not knowing if this is your loved one or not. Like, I can totally see their side and how frustrating and just. Just hard that is to navigate.
- [42:01]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. And families don't work in business days. You know what I mean? That your person, especially when it's this new and this fresh. Right. For most families, your person is on your mind every second of the day. When you're rolling over to go to sleep, when you're waking up in the morning, when you're walking your dog, when you're trying to find any type of normalcy, you're thinking, I wonder if today's the day I'm gonna get the test result. It's hard to walk the line and see both sides, but I try. It's extremely frustrating. But at least a few days after Jelani's body is identified, the La Salle County Sheriff's Office makes a whole hopeful announcement. They'll continue to investigate the case in collaboration with the Peru Police, La Salle Police, Bloomington Police, Illinois State Police, and the FBI's Behavior Analysis Unit. To be clear, though, the FBI won't take the lead. They only assign an agent to help out.
- [42:54]
Courtney Nicole
Meanwhile, people are doing what they can to keep Jelani's memory alive. Five days after Jelani's body is identified, on Tuesday, September 2020 8th, 2021, a painting of him appears in the nearby town of Normal, Illinois. But it only stays up for a day. The city takes it down on Wednesday, September 29, with the excuse that it wasn't authorized and violates code.
- [43:17]
Sarah Turney
Two weeks after that, on Monday, October 11, 2021, ISU student Jimin Lewis takes the microphone at the Bloomington City Council meeting. He says authorities should be treating Jelani's case like a murder murder investigation. He believes Jelani was lynched in a sundown town only 60 miles away and wants to know if the area is unsafe for black people. ISU professor Olivia Butts also speaks up. She believes the case has been mishandled and the Bloomington police have not exhausted their power and resources to help the day family.
- [43:49]
Courtney Nicole
Sarah and I notice that this conversation comes up over and over again with this case as it shows could from the outside. Nobody thinks it's being handled correctly, not even complete strangers, but there are still clues out there waiting to be found whether the police are looking or not.
- [44:07]
Sarah Turney
Yeah. So on October 17, six weeks after Jelani's body was found, a man is driving north on the i55 around Bloomington. He pulls over to secure a mattress that's tied to the roof of his car. As his eyes pass over the side of the road, he notices a shattered iPhone. The man takes the phone to a Walmart in Normal, Illinois, and sells it at the EcoATM for $85 cash. But nobody knows that yet. On October 25, a little over a week later, the La Salle county coroner finally announces Jelani's cause of death. Drowning. There's no evidence of any pre death injury, assault, strangulation, disease, health conditions, or significant intoxication. Although the coroner does admit that the examination was quote, suboptimal because of the level of decomposition and the day. Family can hardly believe it. Jelani was an avid swimmer. He swam in high school and was always at the pool for exercise. Carmen says someone like Jelani doesn't just drown.
- [45:13]
Courtney Nicole
I feel like this has to be so hard for a few family to come to terms with a lack of like, care. With this case, you want to believe that that wouldn't happen to him. Like, he is an avid swimmer. However, on the other hand, rivers can be really, like, intimidating. Once you get in, it might not look like it's moving very fast, but then, you know, so many things go into that. Obviously I'm not a professional, so I don't really know what all goes into. Like ruling out possible injuries when the state of someone's body is like Jelani's and badly decomposed.
- [45:39]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, you have to think what might have happened if he was found sooner. Right. And had a lower level of decomposition. But I mean, to your right, this is a diagnosis of exclusion. So basically they ruled everything out. He was found in water, so they put down drowning. I mean, his manner of death is also unknown. So this is one of those things where you're left with more questions than answers.
- [46:01]
Courtney Nicole
This answer that they came to, it's not better than just like not knowing. It's just kind of like up in the air, you know, the coroner himself
- [46:09]
Sarah Turney
said this was a diagnosis of exclusion, which again, just means that they didn't know what else to put. Maybe just unknown all around would have been more honest, in my opinion.
- [46:19]
Courtney Nicole
Maybe it would have been more believable, maybe to the family, I don't know.
- [46:23]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I mean, if there was like water found in his lungs, then, okay, let's talk about drowning. And we know that not all drownings have to have water in the lungs. Right? It's a whole thing being all because they couldn't find anything else is just really, really sad for this family who desperately wants answers.
- [46:41]
Courtney Nicole
But Carmen's not the only one who finds the corner report insulting. So does civil rights activist Reverend Jesse Jackson. Jelani's case reminds Reverend Jackson of the lynching of Emmett Till, a 14 year old black boy whose body was found floating in a River in 1955. To this day, nobody has been held legally accountable for his death. Meanwhile, other civil rights activists are also paying attention.
- [47:07]
Sarah Turney
They're all trying to get more eyes on this case. On Tuesday, October 26, Jesse Jackson's Rainbow push coalition leads a march in Peru with Jelani's family. They hope to put pressure on law enforcement, so they keep investigating. Their route passes by the separate locations where Jelani's car, belongings and body were found to help raise awareness during his speech the night before, Reverend Jackson says he believes people are covering things up. A spokesman for the rainbow push coalition says the coroner should apologize to the day family for the way his report was released. U.S. representative and former black panther Bobby Rush backs Carmen's call for the FBI to take over the case. He writes a letter to u. S. Attorney general Merrick Garland and FBI director Christopher Wray asking them to intervene. He once again points out the disparities between Jelani's case and that of Gabby Petito. FBI spokesperson Siobhan Johnson says agents are always willing to help, but they won't take over the case.
- [48:07]
Courtney Nicole
I can only imagine that Reverend Jesse Jackson showing up in support of, you know, Jelani and Carmen, it probably means like a big, big deal to her.
- [48:16]
Sarah Turney
Oh yeah, this is huge. I mean, you know, media pressure moves mountains. I say that all the time. And I know it kind of sounds cheesy, but it's true. This type of media attention pressures law enforcement to do something, at least in most cases.
- [48:29]
Courtney Nicole
Yeah, and it seems like at this point the only people who aren't concerned about this case are, are law enforcement. Which is crazy because you have family, Reverend Jesse Jackson, you have the school, you have complete strangers all kind of rallying around Jelani and his family to put pressure on law enforcement. It's just crazy to me that they're still just being like, eh, well, you know, we're not really going to investigate anymore.
- [48:51]
Sarah Turney
FBI jurisdiction can be tricky. And sometimes it feels like they bend the rules and other times it feels like they won't bend the rules and there's like no rhyme or reason to it. So I totally understand the frustration.
- [49:02]
Courtney Nicole
Totally. And I think another point or term that I want to bring up is Missing White Woman syndrome, which, if you don't know, Missing White Woman Syndrome, it's a term used to describe how media coverage and public attention tend to heavily focus on missing person cases involving young white women. Missing White Woman Syndrome most directly impacts missing people of color, especially black and indigenous women, men and children, whose cases often receive less media coverage and public urgencies. That lack of attention can mean fewer tips, less pressure on investigators, like you mentioned earlier, and honestly, slower mobilization of outside resources like federal assistance or private search efforts. On Monday, November 8, 2021, the La Salle County Sheriff's Office finally learns about that iPhone we mentioned, the one sold at the Eco ATM back on October 17th. They check the serial number and it's a match for Jelani's. The sheriff's office reaches out to the Bloomington police, who have EcoATM FedEx them the phone. Three days later, on Thursday, November 11, Carmen finds out via Facebook, not the police, that Jelani's phone was located. She reads it on a post by an acquaintance of the man who found the phone. So she reaches out to the Bloomington PD to confirm. They say they have they haven't contacted her because they, quote, wanted to be sure the phone belonged to Jelani. Then the Bloomington police ask Carmen if she wants them to look through the phone, but she asks them to have the FBI do it. The Bloomington police do send it to the FBI in Chicago. After a year, the FBI will send it back, saying they weren't able to unlock it. Carmen won't accept this. So she brainstorms. And that's when she she remembers something. The security footage of Jelani texting after he left the computer lab. It recorded him unlocking his phone. Carmen calls the Bloomington police Department. They zoom in on the footage and see his password. Eleven days later, they use it to unlock his device, but they say there's nothing on it of interest.
- [51:09]
Sarah Turney
Meanwhile, the Day family's been experiencing other devastating life events. On April 8, 2022, seven months after Jelani disappeared, his father, Save Day, died of leukemia at the age of 51. Jelani never got to save his dad's life with a stem cell donation, but he made a difference for a lot of people and continues to after his death. One month after Seibe passed on May 13, 2022, the Illinois governor signed the Jelani Day bill into law. It requires coroners and medical examiners in the state to notify the FBI if they have custody of human remains, and they are still unidentified within 72 hours of discovery. While the days are proud of the legislative progress made in Jelani's name, they don't feel like any movement was ever made in his case.
- [52:00]
Courtney Nicole
You know, this is really hard because this bill is super important, but at the end of the day, it just. It doesn't solve Jelani's case. So I just can't imagine how the family's feeling.
- [52:10]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, it's so bittersweet whenever I see bills like this. Like, they obviously go on to help other people, but the person, right, the namesake of these bills, often their cases are left unsolved. Like, look at the Amber Hackerman case. Right? The Amber Alert that has helped bring hundreds of kids home. And Amber's case remains unsolved. That's what this reminds me of. It's a really great thing to do to help cases moving forward. But it always makes me so sad for the people who these bills are named after, because so seldom do they help them.
- [52:40]
Courtney Nicole
It's really heartbreaking because we shouldn't know these people's names. They should just be living their life, getting to grow up, continue their life, and do whatever they want. And like you said, these bills and stuff are put into place to really help, but they're kind of left behind with no answers.
- [52:56]
Sarah Turney
Yeah, I feel like any family would, you know, exchange that legacy just to have their loved one back, obviously.
- [53:04]
Courtney Nicole
On Monday, October 2, 2023, the Jelani Day Task force announces they'll no longer proactively work on his case. They will continue to offer a $10,000 reward for information about his final hours and will follow up on tips. But their monthly meetings with Carmen are no longer necessary. They will give her updates if and when they become available.
- [53:27]
Sarah Turney
With the support of her remaining kids, Carmen is still looking for answers about what happened to Jelani. She keeps the conversation going by posting on the justice for Jelani Facebook page regularly. She goes over the case so often, she probably knows more about it than anyone. But we all know that Jelani was a bright, driven young man who had everything to live for, and he had so much of it planned out. He was talking to his cousin about becoming a chairperson and youth director for his hometown naacp. He was getting ready to donate stem cells to his father, who was struggling with leukemia. And after a success filled four years as an undergraduate, he was working towards his master's degree in speech pathology. And to achieve that dream, Jelani woke up early on Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2021. He dressed himself in black slacks, a black belt, black dress shoes, and a blue long sleeve button down shirt. Then he left his apartment and drove to campus. He had his first ever appointment with a patient later that day. So he worked on their chart in the computer lab, bought himself a coffee at Starbucks, and then he left campus. He went back to his apartment, changed into casual clothes and drove to a cannabis dispensary to buy a single blunt. That's the last time Jelani was seen alive. We don't know why he left campus that day or if he planned to go back to school for his appointment, but we wish he were here to tell us.
- [54:52]
Courtney Nicole
If you have any information about Jelani Day, you can call the Jelani Day Joint task force at at 1-800- call FBI. The Jelani Day foundation was established to support families of missing people of color. By fighting racial disparities in how these cases are treated. JDF helps bridge the gap when missing persons of color don't receive adequate national attention, local support or media coverage. They provide financial, emotional and professional resources during the search. You can donate at www.www.thejelani dayfoundation.org.
- [55:36]
Sarah Turney
Thank you for listening to the Final Hours. If you have any other details about Jelani's case, please share it with us on social media. We want to hear from you. Your thoughts, condolences and feedback are what make this community so special.
- [55:49]
Courtney Nicole
At Crime House House, we value your support. Share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow the Final Hours to help others discover the
- [55:57]
Sarah Turney
show and to enhance your listening experience. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. You'll get every episode of the Final Hours ad free along with early access and exciting bonus content.
- [56:09]
Courtney Nicole
The Final Hours is hosted by Sarah Turney and me, Courtney Nicole and is a Crime House original power. Powered by Pape Studios, this episode was brought to life by the Final Hours team Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benidon, Lori Marinelli, Natalie Pertzofsky, Sarah Camp, Alyssa Fox, Dana Brazil, Sullivy, Andrew Rosenblum and Russell Nash. Thank you for listening.
- [56:39]
Sarah Turney
I'm Katie Ring, host of America's Most Infamous Crimes. Each week I take on one of the most notorious, scariest criminal cases in American history. Listen to and follow America's Most infamous Crimes. Available now wherever you get your podcasts.
- [56:55]
Vanessa
Looking for your next listen? Check out hidden history with Dr. Harini Bot Every Monday, Dr. Bot goes where history gets mysterious vanished civilizations, doomsday prophecies, and events that science still can't fully explain. Follow Hidden History now on Apple Podcasts Spotify or wherever you listen.