Today, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill announced a Third District Court judge sentenced James Wallace Petersen III to five years to life for the murder of T.M. on February 22, 1993, following the NBA All-Star weekend.
A maintenance man discovered the body of T.M. when he entered her apartment at 643 South Redwood Road on February 24, 1993, while he was attempting to repossess a microwave. When detectives arrived, it appeared that a struggle had occurred. A lamp and some bedding were on the floor, and there was blood around T.M.’s mouth, as well as blood on a pillowcase. Through the investigation, detectives learned that T.M. was a sex worker. One of her friends from the apartment complex, C.D., told police he had given T.M. a ride on February 22, 1993, to find a trick for money. C.D. dropped T.M. off at 600 West North Temple. When C.D. went to T.M.’s apartment later that night, T.M. introduced him to a male she had picked up who was from Arizona and was in town for the NBA All-Star Game. C.D. and the male never exchanged names.
During the autopsy, the state medical examiner’s office determined T.M. died from asphyxiation due to strangulation and smothering. It was also noted that she had severe bite marks on her chest and right thumb. As detectives worked on the case, testing returned an unknown DNA profile from the bite marks. Detectives entered the DNA profile from one of the bites into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). During the autopsy, a hair was located near one of the bite marks. That hair was submitted to Intermountain Forensics Lab for Forensic Genealogy testing, and it yielded a DNA profile. That profile had gene clusters in common with N.S. The lab created a family tree for N.S., and it returned to the defendant, who at one time resided in Arizona. Later DNA testing confirmed that the DNA profile from the hair near the bite marks was consistent with the defendant’s DNA profile from the saliva near some of the bite marks.
On March 6, 2026, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office charged the defendant under seal. The case was unsealed on March 12, 2026.
On July 27, 2026, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count of murder, a first-degree felony.
Today, a Third District Court judge sentenced the defendant to five years to life. The sentencing disposition created by the legislature in 1993 for first-degree murder was five years to life.
“We hope this conviction provides the victim’s family with a measure of justice and accountability for T.M. We mourn the loss of their loved one with them, and appreciate their patience over the last 30 years as investigators worked the case until it reached its just conclusion,” said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. “We appreciate our prosecutor Brett Keeler and our support staff for their work on this case. We thank the detectives at the Salt Lake City Police Department for their decades of dedication to this case, ensuring the victim's family and our community could finally receive a resolution.”