Cheerleader Marisha Jeter's Dad to Daughter's Killer: "You're Going Straight to Hell"
UNION, S.C. (AP) A former college football player admitted Monday he stabbed his 16-year-old girlfriend to death, while his wife held the victim down to prove her love.
WYFF-TV reported that former Wingate player Pernell Thompson, 21, agreed to plead guilty to murder to avoid a possible death sentence. His wife, Yolanda, pleaded guilty to similar charges and had agreed to testify against her husband. She is awaiting sentencing.
Thompson and his wife lured Union High School cheerleader Marisha Jeter to a parking lot in January 2008, where he stabbed her in the neck. The pair then dumped the girl's body over a bridge and burned her car, prosecutors said.
After pleading guilty, Thompson said "I apologize for the part I did play" and said he never wanted to harm Jeter.
"I know that she's in heaven. I know she's happy and that's one thing giving me peace," Thompson said. "I pray, I hope, for your forgiveness. But I know I don't need it. I received forgiveness from her."
Jeter was a class president and honor roll student. Her father is a trustee on the school board and said he can never forgive Thompson for stealing the special gift God gave him.
His final words to Thompson were: "You're going straight to hell and there ain't nothing nobody can ever do to help you."