On December 6, 2014, 19-year-old Jessica Chambers from Cortland, Mississippi was captured in a gas station surveillance video filling up her car, a normal task for a teenager. Later that night, a motorist drove by what looked like to be a fire. Next to the burning car, was Chambers, upright and walking, slowly, but certainly burning to death.
When emergency responders arrived at the scene, miraculously the teenager was still alive and was able to talk to the rescue workers. After being transferred to a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, she passed away. The most chilling part of this story was Jessica's last words: she knew who did this to her.
Sleuths online have been trying for well over a year now to bring justice to Chambers's name and peace to her family. There had been no leads in the case until Monday, February 22, when finally, a suspect had been named.
According to those on the scene of the crime, Chambers either said the name Derek or Eric, but if she sustained internal burns in her throat and trachea, perhaps that can explain why the named suspect doesn't have either moniker.
Hailing from the same Panola County town as Chambers, 27-year-old Quinton Tellis has been indicted in the killing. Tellis currently is in jail and has been charged in connection with another murder. In addition to being a suspect, he is also accused of using a credit card of Chambers.
Some news outlets are reporting that sources are saying that Chambers and Tellis one time dated. This isn't the first time that a former significant other of Chambers has been questioned.
The most truly alarming part of this case is that someone must have seen the crime happen. Yes, Chambers was driving on a rural road, but you would notice if someone was walking around lit on fire. Was the motorist that stopped the first one to see her, or did someone else see her, but was too afraid to say something? How does someone get doused in gasoline or another flammable liquid and then set on fire without anyone seeing it? Was Chambers being followed on her way back from the gas station? There are all of these unanswered questions, and who knows if time will bring the answers.
Indicting Tellis with the killing of Jessica Chambers does not bring back the teen who died with burns covering 98 percent of her body. It will not rewind time and take back that fateful night. Hopefully, this bold indictment will finally provide Chambers's family and friends with answers, justice, and most importantly, closure.
