Leslie Lynn Hartman, a 46-year-old white female, was found dead on August 26, 2020, in Denton, Texas. Leslie, who was paralyzed and used a wheelchair, died from a gunshot wound. Her boyfriend, Jay Allen Rotter, a sheriff's deputy, initially claimed that Leslie had shot herself with his service weapon. However, evidence and subsequent investigations revealed a different story.
On the day of her death, Rotter called 911, reporting that Leslie had used his service weapon to fatally shoot
herself in the head. He claimed that he would have stopped her if he could have. When officers arrived at the scene, they found Leslie's lifeless body on the floor beside her wheelchair. Blood was found on Rotter and in various parts of the home, including the bathroom, living room, and hallway. Rotter told investigators that Leslie shot herself while they were hugging in their bedroom, watching a television series on his computer.
However, physical evidence and text messages between the couple painted a different picture. Leslie had expressed displeasure with Rotter's alleged drug use and his behavior. In one message, Rotter wrote to a chatroom, "I just sent a 9 millie in this f---in' hippie," which detectives believed referred to Leslie, given her eco-friendly lifestyle and use of psychedelic drugs. Rotter also manipulated his phone, returning it to its original factory settings while in the interrogation room alone, but investigators eventually seized the phone and a computer from the couple's home.
Rotter was arrested and charged with murder and evidence tampering. During his trial, Rotter's defense argued that Leslie had grown suicidal due to her mother's recent cancer diagnosis. Text messages exchanged between Leslie and a friend corroborated that she had been having suicidal thoughts, but the acquaintance indicated that the feelings were fleeting and that Leslie had also expressed a desire to live. Several people who knew Leslie testified that she would not have killed herself.
Despite the defense's arguments, Rotter was convicted of Leslie's murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison. The case had previously ended in a mistrial when it originally went to trial in 2022. Rotter had been an employee of the Tarrant County Sheriff's Office since 2005 and was working in its narcotics division at the time of his arrest. He was later fired from his position. The Denton Police Department recognized the investigative work done by Detective Rodney MooneyHam, Detective David Bearden, and Sgt. Tommy Potts in this case.
