Just before midnight on March 13, 1973, University of Iowa (UI) student Brenda Simpson, 20, stopped by the dorm room of Sarah Ann Ottens, who was also 20.
The two young women were the only residents in Rienow Hall who had stayed on campus during Spring Break. Then, suddenly and tragically, Brenda discovered that she had become the sole such resident.
Sarah was sprawled out on the floor beneath a bed sheet — partially nude, badly beaten, and very much dead. Signs of a struggle surrounded the body. Her clothes looked to have been torn off. A discarded broom handle lay nearby. Bloody water pooled in the room’s sink.
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Instead of hitting the beach for Spring Break that year, Sarah stayed local to pick up extra hours waitressing at the University Hospital School dining facility. She had also told her family in Morrison, Illinois, that she’d be stopping home later that week for a visit. All that, obviously, never came to pass.
Sarah Ann Ottens [Iowa Cold Case files]
A grand jury indicted Hall and set his bail at $50,000, a sum he could not afford. In addition, while awaiting trial, Hall faced forgery charges from a separate case.
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Many members of Iowa City’s Black community and Hall’s athlete friends rallied to his support. Still, considering evidence such as a bloody fingerprint at the scene and a clump of Sarah’s hair in his shoe, in 1974 a jury found Hall guilty and a judge sentenced him to 50 years.
Almost right away, though, trouble arose regarding Hall’s trial. Before the court proceedings, one juror allegedly said he thought Hall did it. Witnesses reported that “most” of the jurors drank alcohol just before their final deliberation.
In addition, racial-bias allegations abounded, as did talk of an unidentified white man who had been spotted with Sarah the day she died.
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Hall remained locked up, though, until 1983, when an appeal claimed that not only had another man who was suspected of three UI sex crimes confessed to killing Sarah, but that the prosecution had actively withheld such evidence. That appeal worked. After serving seven years, Hall walked out of jail a free man.
Alas, on March 20, 1992, James Wendall Hall fatally strangled Susan Hajek, 31, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He’s been in jail for that crime since ’93.
While many state officials still believe Hall killed Sarah Ann Ottens, her murder case remains officially open. Perhaps you can help finally close it. Anyone with information regarding Sarah Ann Ottens’ murder is asked to contact the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation at (515) 725-6010.
Read more:
Iowa Cold Cases
Iowa Unsolved
The Dark Side of America
Justia US Law
New York Times
The Guardian
Main photo: Sarah Ann Ottens [Iowa Cold Case files]
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