Woman avoids death penalty by pleading guilty to murder of Phoenix sex worker stuffed in suitcase
Crystal Hulsey's 2022 booking mugshot. (Maricopa County)
PHOENIX - A Phoenix woman accused in the brutal 2022 killing of a woman whose body was stuffed into a suitcase and dumped in the desert has pleaded guilty, officially taking the death penalty off the table.
What we know:
Crystal Hulsey, 37, entered a guilty plea on Thursday in Maricopa County Superior Court to an extensive slate of felony charges, including first-degree felony murder, kidnapping, armed robbery and aggravated assault. The Aug. 13 plea agreement resolves the death penalty case against her following four years of prosecution by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.
The backstory:
The charges stem from the September 2022 murder of 39-year-old Jennifer Lynn Beede. According to police reports, Hulsey and her co-defendant, Jose Jaquez, were acting as handlers for Beede in connection with sex work operations when they confronted her at a Phoenix hotel. Investigators said Jaquez placed a dog leash around Beede's neck and forced her into a suitcase before the pair transported her to a remote area near Cave Creek Road and Carefree Highway in north Phoenix, where she was shot in the head and left inside the luggage. A bicyclist discovered her remains the following morning.
Jennifer Beede (Silent Witness)
Jaquez, 36, previously accepted a plea deal in the case and was sentenced to life in prison after prosecutors sought the death penalty against both defendants.
RELATED STORY: Ex-Phoenix cop linked to Jennifer Beede gets prison time for sex abuse
Dig deeper:
In the hours following the murder, court records show Hulsey and Jaquez committed a series of additional violent crimes, including holding a man they met on Tinder at gunpoint, extorting his banking information and stealing his car. Hulsey’s comprehensive guilty plea covers those subsequent offenses, including multiple counts of auto theft, aggravated robbery, pandering, prostitution and narcotics possession.
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What they're saying:
"We cannot discuss the details of a plea agreement, but we can share that this is no longer a death penalty case," a spokesperson for the Maricopa County Attorney's Office told FOX 10.
READ MORE: Arizona prosecutors seek death penalty a second time for 2 inmates
Map of the area where police found Beede's body in a suitcase:
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, Maricopa County Superior Court and Phoenix Police Department records.