Bond denied for suspect in Chester woman’s strangulation

The man accused of killing a Chester woman whose unclothed body was found near her home in September was a trusted friend of the family, prosecutors said during a Thursday bond hearing.

Jermaine Marquel Bell, 31, is charged with murder in the death of 51-year-old Judith Lindsay, whose body was found in a bushy area near her home on Fifth Street on Sept. 13, investigators have said.

A judge on Thursday denied bond for Bell, whom investigators and prosecutors called a danger to the community and a possible flight risk.

Bell admitted to authorities “he believed he was the last one to see (Lindsay) alive,” Sixth Circuit Solicitor Randy Newman said in court Thursday, adding that Bell was a family friend.

“The family trusted this man,” he said.

Because Lindsay is believed to have been strangled and then dragged around the house, Newman said, investigators swabbed under her arms and on her neck, and DNA found in those areas matched Bell’s.

“It’s not the best match in the world,” Assistant Public Defender Devon Nielson said. “You’d have to go all the way to the Y DNA to really find a significant number of any kind.

“This is a man who would stand before you and take responsibility for what he did,” Nielson said. “But he denies these charges.”

Lindsay’s daughters were fearful of Bell coming to find them if he was released on bond.

“I’m standing up here knowing that he maybe killed my mama and may try to hurt me because he doesn’t want me to testify,” Teonia McCrorey said. “I’ve been through a lot. My mama took him in, and he had no family.”

Jessica Lindsay also asked the judge to deny bond.

“Me and my kids live there,” she said, referring to her mother’s home. “If he was to get out, who’s to say that he won’t come try to hurt me or my kids?”

This story was originally published December 20, 2015 at 12:53 PM with the headline "Bond denied for suspect in Chester woman’s strangulation."