Interesting story in light of social media jumping to conclusions.
LINK:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/...-20170914-story.html
A Chicago community activist said Thursday that surveillance video from a Rosemont hotel shows Kenneka Jenkins entering a walk-in freezer alone.

(Kenneka Jenkins' family's attorney released a statement late on Friday morning claiming that they have not received video showing Jenkins entering the hotel's walk-in freezer. Read that story here.)

Andrew Holmes, who has worked with many police agencies during his years of anti-violence activism, told the Tribune that Rosemont detectives showed him the video Wednesday when he showed up seeking answers on behalf of the family.

He said the video shows Jenkins, 19, waiting in the lobby of the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel after her friends apparently went up to the room in which they had been partying to retrieve some possessions. Jenkins then takes the elevator to a lower level and wanders around, opening doors in an apparently disoriented manner, he said.

Finally, he said, Jenkins opens two doors in a kitchen area and enters the walk-in freezer. The doors close behind her and Jenkins is seen no more, he said.

Holmes said he was convinced no one else forced Jenkins into the area where she died. But he said the family is awaiting toxicology tests to see whether narcotics had been put into her drink.

"The important part is we all wanted to know: Did anybody call her down there?" he said. "Did anybody force her down there? Was there anybody on the other side of the room when she got down there? And the answer to that is no."

Holmes' account undercuts online speculation in recent days that the Chicago teen was murdered. He said the circulating theories are "just something they made up on social media," and urged people with hard information to call authorities.

However, later Thursday at a protest outside the Crowne Plaza, Jenkins' mother Tereasa Martin said she was misrepresented by the activists who called the news conference.

Protest for Kenneka Jenkins
Protesters rally outside the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel in Rosemont on Sept. 14, 2017, where Kenneka Jenkins, 19, was pronounced dead early Sept. 10, after she was found in a walk-in-freezer. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
When asked whether Holmes had been shown the video, Rosemont police spokesman Det. Joe Balogh did not answer directly, but expressed appreciation for Holmes' assistance "on behalf of the family and community pursuant to this investigation."

He said the department has released the surveillance video to Jenkins' family and to the Cook County Medical Examiner, which has yet to rule on the cause and manner of Jenkins' death. Police have also interviewed numerous people involved in the case, he said.

Martin told a Tribune reporter Thursday that she has not seen the video but was planning to review it with her attorney, Larry Rogers, a prominent personal injury lawyer in Chicago. He did not return messages seeking comment.

Authorities say Jenkins went to a party at the Crowne Plaza on Friday night, and that she went missing early Saturday morning. Martin came to look for her, but said hotel staff and Rosemont police declined to search for hours.

Jenkins was finally found in the walk-in freezer and pronounced dead just before 1 a.m. Sunday. The medical examiner's office has performed an autopsy but has said more tests are needed before it can pronounce a cause of death — a finding that could be weeks away.

Jenkins' death became the focus of fevered online conjecture, with thousands of people using Facebook videos evidently taken at the hotel room party to spin theories about what happened. Many contended that Jenkins had been murdered.

Tribune coverage of Kenneka Jenkins' death
Rosemont Mayor Bradley Stephens complained Wednesday that such speculation was impeding the investigation by forcing detectives to chase spurious leads.

Community activists seized upon the case after Martin complained about what she believed was a lack of urgency in the initial response by the hotel and police. A crowd converged on the hotel Wednesday night to demand justice, confronting guests and telling them a teen had died there under mysterious circumstances.

Despite Holmes' statement, about 50 protesters gathered outside the hotel again on Thursday chanting, "No justice! No peace!"

Tamika Harris, of Chicago, said the latest revelation proves the hotel was negligent for not blocking access to the unsecured area. Police, she said, weren't as forthcoming with evidence, allowing rumors to fester and run rampant.

"They could've put out more than they did," Harris said. "When her mom came out that night, they wasn't giving her no answers to help her out. So people feel like they knew but didn't tell us."

One protester tried to impede traffic and stared down a cop, nose-to-nose. Protesters rushed the entrance of the hotel, prompting police to fall back before chasing them back to the sidewalk. From there, some spit on the hotel's sign and another tried to pull off the lettering.

In a short Facebook Live video broadcast Thursday, Martin asked protesters to keep their demonstrations peaceful and to avoid portraying the incident as a "race thing, because it's not."

Kenneka Jenkins' death
Kenneka Jenkins, 19, was pronouced dead early Sept. 10, 2017, after she was found in a walk-in-freezer at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Rosemont. (Chicago Tribune staff)
"It could be your child," she said. "It could be a blue child, it could be a purple child. It doesn't matter. This is a peaceful march."

Martin arrived at the hotel about 9 p.m. Thursday, thanking protesters for turning out in honor of her daughter. Martin commended a police officer for his work during the investigation.

And just when it appeared the tension had died down, Martin said she was misrepresented by the activists who called the news conference earlier.

"He came out of the blue and acting ... like he was a friend," Martin said about one of the activists. "But he calls me this morning and says, 'Oh the hotel is not making any money. I think you need to go online and stop the protest.'"

When asked by a woman if information given earlier at the press conference was false, she responded, "Yes." She told the crowd not to believe Facebook, but egged on jeers from the crowd when they mentioned unsubstantiated theories.

"Whatever happened is going to come out," one woman told her.

"Yes!" Martin said.

Martin continued, "They were too hush-hush at the hotel."

The crowd erupted into chants of "Justice for Kenneka!" and vowed to return to the hotel until the case was resolved.

"If there is no foul play and there is no cover up, there is no reason to deceive the citizens of the city," activist Jedidiah Brown told Martin. "I apologize for being a part of that press conference. But what I need for you to do is to call for the citizens of Chicago to be out here every day until she gets justice she deserves."

A spokesman for the Crowne Plaza said Thursday that the hotel has offered to pay for Jenkins' funeral.

"Our hearts go out to Kenneka's mother, her family and friends," said the spokesman, Glenn Harston. "We hope covering the funeral costs provides a small bit of relief for them."

Tribune reporters Madeline Buckley and Tony Briscoe contributed to this story.

jkeilman@chicagotribune.com

First of all, what the fuck is a community activist? Is that a real job? You need to go to school then get licensed and certified for that?

Second, why are they trying to blame the hotel? Were they found at fault? Block off access to a restricted area? How about some personal responsibility?

Why is the hotel covering the funeral costs?

People just need to find someone to blame for their shit these days.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Why is the hotel covering the funeral costs?

It probably comes with a release to not sue for wrongful death.

Cheap insurance, $5-10k vs $1mil or more.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
First of all, what the fuck is a community activist? Is that a real job? You need to go to school then get licensed and certified for that?

Second, why are they trying to blame the hotel? Were they found at fault? Block off access to a restricted area? How about some personal responsibility?

Why is the hotel covering the funeral costs?

People just need to find someone to blame for their shit these days.

Community Activist/Organizer = Barack Obama
So you can see how that goes... a professional fraud.

What stops someone from walking out of a walk-in freezer? To the best of my knowledge, nothing!

I suspect this young lady had too much to drink or perhaps was under the influence of a narcotic. Only the coroner's tox screen will tell.

In any event, this is a sad story. She was only 19 years old.

JP

I've been in a lot of walk-in freezers in industrial kitchens. Haven't seen one yet that didn't have the emergency push latch on the inside, I don't think they can legally make one that can't be opened from the inside for this very reason. Of course, if the light was off and was walked into a pitch black freezer, that would've made it hard to find the latch. She could have used her cell phone to light her way, though. It's difficult not to speculate: on the face of it; nobody wants to believe a 19 year old kid could manage to lock herself in a freezer, but Occam's razor says that she may have just had a series of not-so-bright moments that led to her demise.

As for looking lost and wandering an unoccupied floor after hours, trying random doors goes, I don't for a moment believe she wasn't down there looking for shit to steal. But yeah, she must've been drugged or there was a conspiracy to murder a sweet, innocent child. Black people don't die of natural causes in this country, it's all the man's fault.

Kenneka was a little hoochie momma in the making. Type her name in google and select images, its all there.

She lied to her mother about her destination - she said she was going to a movie or whatever. Instead, she is in a hotel room, not a hotel guest but a hanger on, with a bunch of BLM types smoking weed and drinking. The video shows it openly.

Next, she is seen wandering aimlessly, and obviously intoxicated. At first, I thought she was looking for stuff to steal, but after seeing the video, she was mostly out of it.

She apparently went into the freezer alone. She did not have her cellphone or keys. Her friend used Kenneka's cell phone to call her mother, or aunt...who had loaned them the car to go out - telling them she was missing.

The hotel is not going to utilize their staff to search for someone who is not a paying guest. They told the family to call the police. Correct move. You don't have much staff at 3 AM, and what you do have isn't going to be allocated for missing hanger ons.

The autopsy and tox reports will shed light if there was foul play or if something she ingested caused her to be unable to exit the freezer.

Rumors are aplenty, even one that her 'friends' brought her there to be gang-raped and she ended up murdered.

She was just another baby batter candidate (wanted to be a lawyer - and we all know, lawyers hang out at hotels they are not guests at, smoking weed, drinking alcohol and generally act like losers). She had gotten a job recently caring for disabled or elderly people. If it comes back that she was on some fatal drug overdose trip and just expired, she will be forgotten within a news cycle or two. Police will try to determine who had a hand in delivering it to her...

It's a sad story. But the general public is getting weary and jaded over these 'aspiring rapper' or in this case, 'aspiring lawyer' (read = community activist) stories where perpetuated bad life decisions end in tragedy for the decider - and it's always someone else's fault. In this case, the police, the hotel, the so-called friends.

Yes, it sucks when your deceased family members greatest accomplishment to date is duckface selfies. But sometimes that's all they were capable of.

You forgot that a law suit against the hotel will be settled for an undisclosed amount before going to trial!!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
First of all, what the fuck is a community activist? Is that a real job? You need to go to school then get licensed and certified for that?

These are people that sit down with Ghetto dwellers and get them signed up for every Free federal/State County/City program available.
The CO is always well compensated and usually rewarded with political favors, positions etc.
We had one, that even became PRESIDENT! So these are very prestigious and fulfilling jobs...

It seems that every one of these stories where a parent seeks justice for a dead kid who must have been murdered because there is no way such a great kid could be responsible for her own death has one thing in common: the kid doesn't share the same last name as the mother.

Mom is looking for a way to get PAID.

Every babies mamma sends their babies out into the world hoping one will make them rich and famous. The more babies you have, the better your chances!

Two more tidbits that have surfaced as police continue the investigation:

- The hotel room used for the party was booked by a black male and female who used a fraudulent credit card. The card was apparently obtained through identity theft.

- It is believed a minimum of 31 individuals were inside the hotel room the night of the incident. With the police having tracked down and interviewed 16 individuals, they are still trying to locate the other 15.

So everyone knows what type of upstanding people we are dealing with here.

And she was discovered by a hotel employee assisting with the search. The police first arriving noted she "was frozen solid".

And now the "community" wants the fbi to do a death investigation.

Looks like a certain segment of society still can't face facts. She's dead, and it's HER FAULT. No one else. Momma finna wanna sue somebody... sue the person that gave her the liquor & dope...

I go to school with a Rosemont police officer. They've had numerous bomb threats to the hotel, death threats to the hotel staff... all from that certain segment of society.

I have to be out in the N/W burbs early tomorrow morning. I will be renting a room tonight at the Crown Plaza Hotel. I will make tomorrow an easier day and I will also be supporting a business under attack by thugs. We have to take a stand against thuggery like this.

quote:

Originally posted by Tommydogg:
Every babies mamma sends their babies out into the world hoping one will make them rich and famous. The more babies you have, the better your chances!

And they try hard increasing the odds.

quote:

Originally posted by Tommydogg:
Every babies mamma sends their babies out into the world hoping one will make them rich and famous. The more babies you have, the better your chances!

Best thing would be for one to get shot by the police. That's what is referred to as winning the "ghetto lotto".

Sorry, someone help me out here, please. What's the issue with the family? What are they claiming, suggesting, or complaining about?

Seems to me the issue is that a Black stereotypical teen girl in Chicago went to a wild drug/booze party, hosted by a fraudulent couple, at a hotel. The girl seemingly had enough drugs/booze she couldn't walk/navigate responsibly, became disoriented, ended up going into a walk-in freezer in the hotel kitchen, died before being rescued.

And the deceased's family feels there may have been foul play in the death; the hotel, police, others are responsible for the death (anything and everything responsible, but not their precious one).

OK, business as usual