Suspect in death of mother of 10 is back in Wisconsin. Here's what we know

Chris Ramirez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·2 min read

A man charged with killing a Milwaukee mother of 10 is back in Wisconsin days after he was apprehended in Minnesota.

Jerrod Stewart was in a Milwaukee courtroom Monday morning, answering to charges that stemmed from a Jan. 27 domestic violence incident that was reported to 911 by the victim's 11-year-old daughter. He faces various charges, including strangulation and suffocation, intimidating a victim of a domestic violence crime and false imprisonment.

Stewart, 41, of Milwaukee, also made his initial appearance Sunday, by video conference, on charges of first-degree reckless homicide and bail jumping.

In each case, the victim was his wife, Tomitka Jurnett-Stewart, 41, whose body was founded last month stuffed in the truck of her car.

Court Commissioner J.C. Moore set bonds totaling $1,050,000 for Stewart's release; he remained in the Milwaukee County Jail Monday, online records show.

Here's a timeline of what we know about the two matters:

  • Jan. 27: Jurnett-Stewart's 11-year-old daughter called 911 to report her stepfather repeatedly hit her mother and wouldn't let the woman leave a home on the 2700 block of North 10th Street. Police arrived and arrested Stewart as he was to flee through a bedroom window. Five children, including the one who called police, were in the home at the time. In a police report, officers noted Jurnett-Stewart had dried blood on her lower lip, bruising on her neck and a black eye developing.

  • Feb. 29: Stewart is freed from jail after posting a $5,000 bond. A judge orders him to wear an electronic monitoring device to track his movements. Stewart also is ordered to not contact the victim.

  • April 14: Friends can't locate Jurnett-Stewart and file a missing persons report.

  • April 17: Jurnett-Stewart's body is found in the trunk of her car in the 4500 block of North 29th Street. She was stabbed 49 times.

  • April 18: Stewart fails to show for a hearing in a domestic violence case. A bench warrant is issued.

  • April 30: Stewart is arrested in the Minneapolis area. The Milwaukee District Attorney's Office files charges, accusing him of first-degree reckless homicide and bail jumping.

  • May 8: Stewart is extradited and returned to Wisconsin.

A preliminary hearing was scheduled for May 22.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Man charged in death of Milwaukee mother Jurnett-Stewart of 10