Faith Hedgepeth Murder - A Defense of Karena Rosario
I remember hearing about this case years ago when it first happened but only briefly. Another post on Unresolved Mysteries intrigued me so I started doing my own research on the case and I don't believe the popular theory that Karena was involved.
Very basic summary: Faith was living with her friend, Karena Rosario, in a one bedroom apartment between Chapel Hill and Durham. They went out to Thrill nightclub around 12:40am and left around 2am because Karena felt sick from drinking. They arrived home around 3am and a woman who lived below the two was awake watching television and said that she heard three thumping noises, which she described as similar to a heavy bag being dropped or furniture being overturned, shortly afterward.There were texts from Faith's phone sent around 3:40am to Brandon Edwards, a former boyfriend of Karena's. The text said "Hey b. Can you come over here please. Rosario needs you more aha. You know. Please let her know you care." Karena was also calling Brandon at the same time. He never answered so Karena calls another guy and leaves the apartment to go to his house around 4:25am. The apartment is left unlocked when she leaves. Karena returns around 11am the next morning with a friend, Marisol, and discovered Faith's body. She was hanging off the bed, face up, clad only in a black shirt that was pulled up over her head. She calls 911 - a call some people find suspicious - and police arrive. There was a fast food bag left near the body with a note scrawled on it that said something like "I'm not stupid, jealous bitch."
A lot of people seem to think that Karena was the murderer or was heavily involved. After combing through some different sources, I find that theory highly unlikely. I will try and link my sources as they are referenced but will have a list at the end as well.
DNA Evidence - To begin, police recovered tissue fragments and DNA evidence from the Bacardi rum bottle that was used as a murder weapon to beat Faith. The autopsy indicated rape so a sexual assault kit was performed and semen was found. The DNA from the semen matched the samples found on the bottle. Police also found DNA on the pen used to write the note which also matched the other samples. Put simply, Karena physically was not the one to kill Faith. People have speculated that Faith could have had consensual sex with this man at an earlier point but I find that unlikely given the autopsy findings and a bloody tampon found near the body. Regardless, the DNA matches other samples so this man is the killer.
Karena's Behavior - A lot of the suspicions of Karena stems from her behavior leaving the club that night. Mainly that she left the club at 2am because she felt unwell but then left around 4:20am to go to a guy's house AND left the door unlocked. I think this behavior is blown out of proportion. As a woman who was in college at one time, the puke and rally is real. I am not surprised whatsoever that Karena was able to recover a bit after leaving the club and then go to a guy's house. Additionally, not locking the door was stupid behavior but not malicious. The girls had been drinking so it could be as simple as Karena forgetting to lock the door as she left. The small, one bedroom apartment was also primarily Karena's. It's possible there was only one key and Faith had it that night. *Quick sidenote that Faith was found on Karena's bed which seems odd at face value but this was a one bedroom apartment in Karena's name. Faith did not have her own bedroom and was likely sleeping in Karena's bed since she left to stay with a guy.
Timeline - Based on DNA, Karena was not the murderer but potentially could have been involved. The girls arrived home at 3am and Karena left around 4:20am with Jordan McCrary. His DNA (along with 700 other friends, co workers, acquaintances, etc. of both girls) was tested and was not a match. I don't see how the murder, sexual assault and cleanup could happen in this time frame. Faith was texting at 3:43am which also cuts that timeframe in half. There are theories that Karena was actually the one texting from Faith's phone but I find this unlikely. Karena was using her own phone to call Brandon Edwards at the same time, I believe Karena was drunk and missing an ex boyfriend. Faith was attempting to help the situation. If Karena was using Faith’s phone to pretend she was still alive, why 3:43am, why not closer to the time she left in order to strengthen an alibi? The police have also CONSISTENTLY stuck to the timeline that Faith was murdered between 4:30am-10:30am. They never viewed Karena as the main suspect.
Voicemail - Faith's family alleges the voicemail is of the attack and murder and that a glitch with Faith's phone caused the timestamp to incorrectly appear at 1:23am - when the girls were still at the club. There is no real evidence for either the content of the call (it is extremely muffled and loud, hard to hear) or specific instances of timestamps being off by that margin. The voicemail is a clear case of confirmation bias, IMO.
911 - The most popular cited evidence for Karena's guilt is the 911 call she made upon discovering Faith's body. This statement analysis goes through each response from Karena and the dispatcher. To be honest, this is one of my biggest pet peeves with true crime so selfishly I don't want to dive in too much. Basically - discovering a body, let alone the bloody and bludgeoned of your close friend, would be a horribly traumatic experience. No one can know how they would react in that situation. Also, every person reacts differently to situations so I refuse to make my decision in this case based on how I *believe* I would act in that situation.
Sorry this got so long. In summary, I don't see how Karena was possibly involved with the murder. Police have questioned over 2000 people, DNA tested 700 and searched Karena's laptop and phone. If she possibly had help, the person would have been so far removed from her circle AND someone that no communication with was ever unearthed. The note written on the bag does seem like this was someone the girls' knew personally but based on the extremely broad span of the investigation, I'm not quite sure if that's the still the best theory. I’m curious on any other theories people have!
Edit: This blog has some added information. The locked door is mentioned and there was only one key. Karena left the key with Faith because she was planning on being picked up next morning by Faith.