Abuse lasted: 1 year | April 1, 1979 – November 26, 2006
27 years old
Warning, this case discusses murder and domestic violence.
Sherri was described as very smart, athletic, loved animals, and loved to dance and that’s why she navigated to cheerleading when she was in high school. Everybody loved Sherri she just had one of those personalities that everybody loved. Sherri seemed to be happy with the new move and told her parents she was excited about moving to Greensboro, NC.
After being there for some time she met a man named DeCarlo Bennett at a party, and they started dating. As with most relationships they start off great, but one day it changed and DeCarlo started being abusive towards her. The abuse started off with emotional and mental abuse and then the physical came into play and Sherri no longer wanted to be with DeCarlo, but he had her afraid to leave with the threats that he made if she tried to leave him. When she finally got tired and said this was it he knew he was losing control and power over her so he felt like if he couldn’t have her then nobody could.
In November of 2006, Sherri had plans to go to a holiday party with friend from work and when Sherri never showed up, and didn’t even call that was a red flag because she really loved parties and get togethers so she wouldn’t t have purposely missed the party.
Over the next few days, Sherri didn’t show up for work, nor did she pick up her paycheck and that was very odd because Ms. Portia Shipman, founder of The Sherri Jackson foundation said she was one of the first ones in line to pick up her check.
Sherri’s boyfriend, DeCarlo Bennett, contacted Sherri’s parents asking if they had heard from her, but no one had seen or heard from her in several days and that was strange because she always kept in touch with her parents.
Sherri’s co-workers went over to her apartment, and knocked on the door. When Sherri didn’t answer they began to get worried, because this wasn’t like her at all. They also noticed in the parking lot her car was there so they did what anyone would have done….They contacted the police and made a report because it had been passed the 48 hour threshold.
On December 3, 2006, the Greensboro police received permission to enter the apartment where Sherri lived. Once inside, they noticed that there had been a struggle of some sort. The apartment was distressed, furniture was knocked over, and some blood spots was found on the wall and other places throughout the apartment.
In her bathroom, the floor was very slick as if someone had tried to clean it with something in a hurry. The investigators believed someone had used a chemical to attempt to clean up the evidence. A CSI team used luminol to search for signs of blood and it was a success because the bathroom lit up immediately, and there was blood all over the floor, walls, bathtub, and sink.
The investigators took several personal items in hopes
that DNA would be found to help them solve this case faster.
DeCarlo arrived on the scene in a panic. He told the police that he and Sherri had gotten into an argument on November 29th. but he claimed that after the fight, Sherri left to go to a party with some friends. He also revealed that Sherri was 3 months pregnant with his baby which was a lie, because she was intending to leave him. He said he was looking forward to being a dad, and for his life with Sherri which was all made up to cover up for what he had done to Sherri.
When the police asked to search DeCarlo’s truck he agreed and they found some blood inside the vehicle that was his and Sherri’s. He said that came from Sherri when she had cooked dinner one night and cut her hand. He said she must’ve grabbed one of his towels and left it in his truck. When the police searched the back of the truck they were hit with a smell of human decomposition and they knew they were on the right track then. He claimed they got into an argument over an outfit that she wanted to wear to the party and he disagreed. The truth was she was tired and was planning on leaving him and getting back with her ex boyfriend and he knew it and became even more angry and violent at this point. Before he allowed that to happen he had made up in his mind that he was going to kill her and he did. Police said it was also strange when they researched his phone records that DeCarlo never attempted to call her after she came up missing. They said for someone who loves someone and they’re pregnant with their baby that’s odd. So between November 26-29th. 2006, Decarlo had killed Sherri and buried her body at his mother’s house in her backyard in Durham, North Carolina.
On December 14, 2006, DeCarlo Bennett was apprehended in Wake Forest, North Carolina and he was extradited back to Greensboro. Over the next few months the police searched for Sherri’s body, and built a case against DeCarlo in the meantime.
About 19 months after Sherri disappeared, DeCarlo’s lawyer reached out to the district attorney’s office. The lawyer said DeCarlo had agreed to tell the police where he had buried Sherri in exchange for a plea deal.
The offer on the table was for DeCarlo to plead guilty to second degree murder. The police and DA was supposed to let Sherri’s family know and make a decision, but they were never informed beforehand the officials made the decision for them. At the end of the day Sherri’s parents just wanted to find Sherri so they could give her a proper goodbye and burial.
DeCarlo drew a map of his mother’s backyard in Gramercy Park and on June 26, 2008, the police excavated the backyard of the house now owned by a new owner and after 13 hours, the police didn’t find anything. They said DeCarlo was lying and made the whole story up. When he agreed to take them to the location he did and after a couple of hours they found the skeletal remains of Sherri Jackson. She had been hit in the face with something and strangled to death. DeCarlo served 13 years in prison and is currently released from
prison.
DeCarlo is in his 40’s now and still have a chance at living a good life. Unfortunately, Sherri doesn’t have that opportunity because her life was violently taken away by someone who was jealous and controlling. I hope DeCarlo has changed and I pray he doesn’t do this to another woman. Sherri didn’t deserve this and 13 years isn’t long enough for a crime of this nature. Life for a life with no plea deal is the best deal. There was proof of his violent past, but we never research a person before we start dating them, but we should. In this situation he had a history of abusing women. Two women had made reports of domestic violence against him in the past, but that wasn’t enough for him to see that he had a problem and reach out for help. As most cases it always go to far and end up with someone being killed that’s why we say with the first red flag you notice leave right then. Please don’t ignore, because the abuse only worsens after time passes. Sherri Jackson you are no longer here, but your life and memories will live on forever in the lives you touched while you were here. We will never forget about you! ❤️❤️❤️💜💜💜