September 21, 2023, News Release
Louisa – Today, Rusty McGuire, Louisa County Commonwealth’s Attorney, announced a Louisa County jury convicted Jaqueline Bledsoe, 56, of Bumpass, of second degree murder following a two-day trial. On June 4, 2022, Melvin Hansen, 59, Bumpass, sent Bledsoe a text at 9:00 p.m. indicating he was ending their relationship. Three hours and twenty minutes later, she made a bizarre call to the Louisa County Sheriff’s Office indicating she had shot someone an hour earlier and “didn’t know what to do about that.” She indicated the man attacked her and “that is what happens.” Detective Mark Stanton, who was qualified as an expert in mobile and vehicle forensics, learned that she left her home after shooting the victim. She drove around and then went to a friend’s house and brought him to the scene. She moved his body at some point from the barn as “to not upset her show dogs in the barn” where she shot him. It was also uncovered that she enlisted friends after the murder to go back to her house and obtain items not recovered by the sheriff’s office.
Bledsoe took the stand for over four hours today and claimed that she was scared and was forced to shoot the victim. She indicated he choked her and pushed her down multiple times, but did not show any injuries to corroborate her defense.
Speaking on the conviction, McGuire said: “It is a tragedy she shot a man in cold blood. It only made it worse that she spent the past year trying to portray the father of three as a violent man. Fortunately, the jury saw through her lies.”
Co-counsel Morgane Harper stated: “We are so thankful to the professionalism and commitment of the Louisa County Sheriff’s Office in leaving no stone unturned.” The agencies that assisted in the investigation and prosecution of this case were the Louisa County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, Louisa County Sheriff’s Office, Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and the Department of Forensic Science.
Bledsoe was also convicted of use of a firearm in the commission of murder and is scheduled for a sentencing hearing on January 10, 2024 where she faces up to 43 years in prison.
