LAUDERDALE LAKES
Police: No arrests yet in death of Lauderdale Lakes woman
No arrests have been made in the death of a Lauderdale Lakes woman who was popular in her neighborhood and hoped to return to her native Caribbean island to teach.
BY RACHEL HATZIPANAGOS
SUN SENTINEL
The family of Jessica Cornelius, whose death detectives were investigating Sunday as a possible homicide, remembered the vibrant 43-year-old woman who worked two jobs to support her son's ambition to become a dentist.
``Jessica was a person who was full of life. Everyone was drawn to her,'' said her sister, Perret Cornelius-Morton, 38, of Lauderdale Lakes. ``She just had a magnetic personality.''
The Broward Sheriff's Office has released few details about what happened Saturday at Jessica Cornelius' apartment in Lauderdale Lakes.
So far, they have said that Cornelius was last seen by her boyfriend, who had dropped by that night to borrow her car. When he returned, he found Cornelius seriously injured. She was taken to Broward General Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, where she died.
BSO withheld information about how she was killed. No arrests had been made by late Sunday.
Her sister last saw her about 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Cornelius-Morton had brought her two young daughters to see their aunt.
``She kissed them and they were dancing with her,'' Cornelius-Morton said. ``She came out with some candy. She was radiantly beautiful.''
Cornelius-Morton said she talked with her older sister Saturday about her love life. She had just started dating someone new, a man in his 20s, whom she described as attentive and caring.
Her ex-boyfriend, a man Cornelius-Morton had introduced her to, found out about the new man, according to a text message he sent Cornelius-Morton on Saturday, she said.
Authorities have questioned both men, she added.
Her sister loved to cook macaroni pie and was known as ``Lady J'' in her West Indian community.
``She was everyone's favorite person,'' Cornelius-Morton said.
Jessica Cornelius' 24-year-old son, who lives in Tallahassee, plans to attend dentistry school, she said.
``She supported him 100 percent,'' Cornelius-Morton said, adding that her sister would send her son money to support his education. The woman worked in a registrar's office at Keiser University's Fort Lauderdale campus and as a front-desk clerk at a Plantation hotel.
Jessica Cornelius had attended Keiser to obtain a master's degree in education. Her sister said she planned to return to teach in her native Nevis, an island in the West Indies. ``She was a hard worker and she was very dedicated to school and work and her son,'' Cornelius-Morton said. ``Everyone wanted to be friends with her.''
Join the discussion
The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.




















My Yahoo
@Nyx.replyAnswerText@