Aahana Swrup
‘An American Crime,’ directed by Tommy O’Haver, depicts the tragic events that led up to the torture and death of Sylvia Likens, a young girl in Indiana. Even though the 2007 film equips a cinematic lens to recount the tale, it retains authenticity to reality, showcasing the brutality the young girl faced at the hands of Gertrude Baniszewski and her children. Sylvia Likens, along with her sister, Jenny, lived in Baniszewski’s house during the early 1960s as boarders. However, their stay at the single mother and her various children’s house soon turned into a living hell when Baniszewski started severely abusing Sylvia, keeping her locked up in a basement, injured, starving, and dehydrated.
Eventually, after Sylvia’s devastating death at the Baniszewski house, authorities uncovered the reality of her situation, leading to several trials and convictions. However, while the story of Jenny Likens’ traumatic experience remains well-known, one has to dig deeper to learn about her life after her exit from the Baniszewski residence.
Jenny Likens Played a Key Role in the Court Trials Against Baniszewski
After Sylvia Likens’ death on October 26, 1965, the police were called to the Baniszewski residence in Indianapolis, Indiana, where Gertrude Baniszewski planned to feed them tall tales about the events that led to the young girl’s death to save herself and her family from suspicion. Part of the ruse included a letter she had forced Sylvia to write. The note was meant to make it seem like she was missing from the Baniszewski residence for days and returned to the house in her battered and bruised state before dying. Nonetheless, Jennifer Faye Likens, who was stuck in an abusive situation while grieving her sister’s death, reportedly told the officers that she would tell them everything if they got her out of her predicament.
Thus began the case against Gertrude Baniszewski for the torture and death of Sylvia Likens. During the trials, multiple witnesses came forward, with Jenny remaining a key player. The girls’ parents— Lester and Better, who worked the Midwest fair circuit— left them with the Baniszewski after the financially struggling single mother offered to board the girls for 20 dollars per week. However, a few weeks into their stay at her house, the woman turned abusive towards the girls, extremely so in Sylvia’s case.
Although the sisters had other family members, including older siblings, they remained caged in their impossible situation. Jenny, who had polio, was even sometimes forced to inflict pain on her sister under duress. Eventually, after multiple testimonies, convictions were handed out to Gertrude Baniszewski of first-degree murder with a life sentence. Likewise, some of her kids and children from the neighborhood were also convicted for their involvement in Sylvia’s death.
Jenny Likens Had a Difficult Time Moving Forward
In the aftermath of Sylvia’s death and the following court trials, Jenny Likens faced many hardships in overcoming her past trauma. According to her older sister, Dianna Bedwell’s conversation with The Clermont Sun, she was also on consistent medication.” [No,] At times she [Jenny Likens] had breakdowns. She had to go on nerve pills for the rest of her life,” said Bedwell. “But I wasn’t living close to her since I lived out of state. But I know that she had very bad memories. Bless her heart. She just didn’t talk about it. I guess it was hard to deal with.” Even so, despite her past trauma, Jenny continued to try and move forward.
Furthermore, as per Denise Noe’s true crime book, ‘The Bloodied and the Broken,’ which delved into factual investigation of several horrific real-life cases — by 1966, Jenny enrolled in a Job Corps program and went on to work in a bank. In 1985, when talk began of granting Gertrude Baniszewski parole, the Likens family protested the idea, with Jenny even appearing on television to demand her continued imprisonment. Ultimately, the matriarch was granted parole regardless of the public outcry. Afterward, when Gertrude Baniszewski died on June 16, 1990, Jenny gave a newspaper clipping of her obituary to her mother, Betty, with a note that said, “Some good news. Damn old Gertrude [Baniszewski] died. Ha ha ha! I am happy about that.”
Jenny Likens Passed Away in 2004
Jenny Likens eventually married Leonard Wade, becoming Jenny Likens Wade. According to reports, she remained in Indiana but moved to Beech Grove after marriage and settled down. She and her husband had two kids: a son, Bob, and a daughter, Tammy. Even so, despite her efforts to move forward, her past experiences remained a heavy weight on her shoulders. As per The Weekly View, her friends attested to her transformation into a nervous recluse. Sadly, on June 23, 2004, Jenny Likens Wade tragically passed away due to a heart attack. Reportedly, an unexpected knock by a pizza deliveryman triggered the attack. Nonetheless, no other details are known about her passing. Her beloved memory continues to be survived by her husband, kids, one grandchild, siblings, and other friends and family.
Read More: Olivia Cox: Where is Kelli Bordeaux’s Sister Now?
