Deborah Leigh Clemenson was born December 22, 1985, to Janet Clemenson. She has one sibling, a brother. According to her mother, she was loved by all who knew her. She lived, with her mother, in Calhoun, Georgia.
Saturday June 26, 1999, was a normal summer day for Janet. Around 6:30 or 7:00pm, Deborah helped her mother take in groceries from the car to the house. After she finished helping her mother put away groceries, Deborah rushed back outside to hang out with her friends again. Deborah’s mother reported that she saw Deborah getting into a dark older model car with a long front end from the kitchen window. By the time she reached the door to tell her she could not go, the car was speeding away. A next-door neighbor reported that he saw Deborah cross the street and get into an early 80’s two-tone Thunderbird being driven by 17-year-old Adam Hamrick. The neighbor did not recognize the passenger in the car.
According to testimony, Adam was dating a girl by the name of Ruby. He was hanging out with her at her parents’ house when they had an argument. Ruby left the house after the fight and left Adam there with her brother Jesse Swims. Jesse was 31 years old at the time. Jesse told Adam that he had a cooler full of beer and marijuana and suggested they hang out.
The two drove around drinking and smoking for a while just enjoying their time. Then Jesse asked Adam to take him to a girl’s house so he could “get some.” They drove to a pool hall that was across the street from Deborah’s house and picked her up. The three then continued driving around town drinking and smoking.
Jesse suggested they drive up to John’s Mountain. Once there, he directed Adam to drive down a long dirt road until they reached a barricade. During the drive, Jesse claimed he was trying to “do stuff” with Deborah in the back seat. Once stopped, he told Adam that Deborah was too nervous to do anything with him in the car, so he was going to take her into the woods to “get some.” He then gave Adam some marijuana and told him to roll some joints for when they returned.
After about 20 minutes, Jesse returned to the car with Deborah’s clothes in a balled-up wad. Adam asked Jesse where Deborah was. Jesse replied that Deborah refused to have sex with him, so he raped and killed her. He then pulled out a knife and held it to Adam’s throat and threatened to kill him if he said anything.
Jesse then directed Adam to drive to the Conasauga River so he could dispose of the evidence. There were other cars on the bridge as they approached, so he directed Adam to drive down the road a bit and turn around. As they drove back over the bridge, Jesse threw the knife and clothing into the river.
Military personnel conducting a training exercise on July 17, 1999, on John’s Mountain, discovered a partially decomposed body. The body was unclothed except for socks and shoes. The cause of death was determined to be “homicide or violence associated with a rectangular perforated injury of the sternum not otherwise specified.”
The identity of the body was initially unknown. The shoes were consistent with a pair Deborah borrowed from a friend. The police released a 3D artistic rendering of the head to the media. Deborah’s mother recognized the rendering as her daughter.
Fiber testing revealed that fibers taken from the shoes matched those taken from Adam’s Thunderbird. Police took DNA samples from the body and compared it to Deborah’s toothbrush, confirming the identity of the body.
Initially Adam and Jesse claimed to have never met Deborah. They both told police they went to Jesse’s boss’s house that day to drink. Even when presented with certain evidence, the two denied any knowledge or involvement.
In West Virginia in November 1999, Jesse and Adam committed armed robbery and subsequently were arrested. Both were charged and set to serve time.
In January 2001, Jesse and Adam were officially charged with the murder of Deborah Clemenson. Adam plead guilty to concealing the death of another and sentenced to serve 15 years. He was released in 2007. Jesse went to trial and was found guilty of murder. He was sentenced to life and is currently serving his sentence.
Deborah Clemenson was born just a few months before I was born. She should be 36 years old this year. It is saddening to know that her mother never got to watch her graduate high school, get married, have children or any of the other milestones that a parent expects to see their children achieve. No parent should ever have to bury their child. It is beyond disturbing that Jesse Swims felt it was his prerogative to, first of all, have sex with a 13-year-old child, but secondly to take her life. Regardless as to what he felt he was entitled to; he deserves to rot in prison and will one day face a judgement much worse than anything Man can give him.
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